


The Bodyguard

by aixmarie



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Bodyguard, Character Death, Disturbing Themes, Happy Ending, Light Angst, M/M, Pain, Please Don't Hate Me, Sexual Content, Tears, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-10
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-15 16:12:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 26,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16936452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aixmarie/pseuds/aixmarie
Summary: He is the best at what he does. So when an old friend calls him to deal with an exclusive celebrity client, he thought the job would be easy. Until he meets the stubborn rising superstar. The job turns out to be the toughest one he has ever taken.





	1. A Bothersome Request

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> I was not supposed to post this until I finish writing the entire fic. But I took a rest from Twitter so I might have more time to update for the next few days. I hope you love this as much as you loved "Show Him Who's Boss." Here's another Jeongcheol fic, inspired by another one of my favorite movies! I hope you will not get sick of me getting inspiration from movies. 
> 
> Thank you and enjoy reading!
> 
> -A❤️

The parking lot was dimly lit and there was no one there, save for a few cars and three breathing bodies. One little movement and it would totally give away his position. So he holds his breath and waits for the person to show himself up in front of him. Senator Chwe’s son was secured inside the vehicle, hopefully crouching like he instructed.

There were sounds of someone taking careful steps not far away from where he's hiding. He knows it's the guy, but he's too careful so as not to make any reckless decisions. As soon as the footsteps stop, he readies himself for what he's about to face.

He hears someone whispering. _'Fuck. There's more than one of them.’_ He knows he's in trouble so he detaches himself from the car door he was leaning against and rolls under the car to watch the gap intently.

No, there was only one pair of footsteps walking towards the black sedan he was under.

 _‘So where’s the other one?’_ He can’t turn his head, there was not much space for him to do that.

He moves his arm, aiming for the guy’s calf. If the guy has someone with him, he can’t mess this chance up. With precision, he pulls the trigger of the silenced gun, which makes the guy drop his weapon and fall onto his knees with a groan. Seungcheol rolls out of his hiding and aims at the guy, who was scrambling to grab his gun from the floor. He takes no risks and fires one shot through the guy’s chest, making him fall flat and lifeless on the parking lot floor.

Seungcheol doesn’t waste a  single second. He approaches the guy and grabs the gun from the floor. He quickly turns around to find the other’s companion. There was no one.

Just then, a buzz can be heard from the guy’s inner jacket. He notices the earpiece on the guy’s left ear. _“He is working for someone.’_ He was informed that this guy was just a crazy anti-government guy. _‘Someone is instructing him.’_

After checking the area, making sure the parking lot is clear, Seungcheol opens the car door and lets the whimpering client out.

“Are they gone?” Vernon asks, tears streaming down his face.

“Yes. He is gone. I need you to stay a little bit more in the car, take a seat and don’t peek outside okay?” he hands him a water bottle from the front and makes him sit comfortably at the back.

“Wh-Why?”

“Because there is a dead body in front of this car. Now go back in.” Seungcheol slams the door shut and starts making the necessary calls.

 

_'This complicates things.'_

*****

The venue was packed and there was still a long waiting line outside. Even though the tickets were sold out, people still came over to take their chances to see the rising superstar. His staff went around to collect fan letters and gifts but it was total chaos. People started dropping them on the boxes instead of handing them to the staff and they had no choice but to bring everything in to a separate room. They have not thoroughly checked everything and Joshua has to wait before they could pass him all the gifts.

“These flowers are from Seungkwan.” Wonwoo hands the basket full of peonies and roses to Jeonghan. “And here’s the card.”

“Isn’t he the sweetest?” Jeonghan smiles at the beautiful arrangement in front of him, smelling the roses as his makeup artist continues to make the finishing touches. “Where’s Joshua, by the way?” Jeonghan tries to look around but doesn’t find his personal assistant - and best friend - in the room. "It's been an hour."

“I believe he went to talk to the club manager. They are having some trouble with the waiting line outside.” Wonwoo answers.

“Hmmm, that much people want to see me huh?” Jeonghan sneers.

“Hannie! Wonwoo! The stage is ready and you’re set to go live in five minutes.” Seokmin walks in, voice loud as always.

“But my makeup isn’t perfect yet. Tell them I’ll go in ten instead.” Jeonghan whines back at his PR manager.

“Jeonghan, we must make a good impression here! You can’t be a diva everywhere! People will talk about you like crazy!” Seokmin answers back.

“Oh stop it! They want me there more than I want to be here!” he just rolls his eyes and takes a bite of the strawberries that were prepared in front of him.

After a few minutes, Joshua barges in the dressing room, panting. “Hannie, you’re set to go out in two minutes. Hurry up.”

“I’m not done yet! Why are you all so jumpy?!”

“Because you have to make this work or else…”

“Or else what?!”

 

**BOOM!!!**

 

The ground shook as a loud explosion was heard somewhere nearby. Joshua ran to Jeonghan who was already in Wonwoo’s arms while Seokmin crouches under the makeup table. People were heard running around outside. The commotion was probably crazy, and they weren’t sure if trying to get out of this place was a wiser choice than staying inside the dressing room.

Joshua’s phone rings. It was Mingyu, Jeonghan’s head of security.

“Stay in the room. Don’t come out. The crowd is crazy, there’s a stampede. It’s a small explosion by the back of the club and we believe that’s it. So keep Jeonghan safe there. I asked Dino to prepare the car.”

“Thanks Gyu.” Joshua hangs up and relays the message to the team. Jeonghan exhales a sigh of relief but Wonwoo is still on alert.

“Lock the door. Don’t let anyone in unless we’re sure it’s Mingyu.” Wonwoo instructs but no one wanted to take a step from where they’re all crammed together. So Joshua bravely makes the move and locks the door, but rushes back beside Jeonghan to comfort his best friend.

*****

Seungcheol picks up an apple from the fruit bowl and takes a seat on his breakfast bar. He brandishes a small knife from the drawer, and starts peeling and slicing the fruit, placing the pieces neatly on a small plate.

“Please Cheol. I know this is different from what you usually do, but I really need you.” Wonwoo practically begs.

“You know I don’t do celebrities.” he says in between chewing.

“Celebrities, politicians, they’re basically the same now!” Wonwoo reasons but Seungcheol just shrugs his shoulders. “Cheol, he has a little brother. He’s scared. Please. I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

“What is so unique about this case?” Seungcheol says but he honestly isn’t interested.

He stays away from showbizness and private clients. His job was to protect politicians and their families, that’s his forte. And he never wants to stay in one job, it complicates things. He wants to always jump from one job to another - more money, no attachments, less troubles.

“It’s…” Wonwoo grabs a handful of his hair and sighs. “I have to show you Cheol. It’s a lot to process.”

“And how much do I get from this?” he answers, amused at his friend. He nevers become this exasperated. He’s always void of expression.

“2 million won a week.”

“I can get at least 2.5 from a politician, Wonu you know that.”

“This affects my pocket, Cheol. I’m his manager!”

“And this affects my life and my pocket.” Seungcheol raises his eyebrows at Wonwoo.

“Fine! 3 million a week!” Wonwoo gives in.

Seungcheol sighs. His friend is too pushy, he won’t leave unless he says yes. So he risks a safe answer instead. “Okay. I’ll only agree to do it after I see more of this case. That’s it!”

Wonwoo’s eyes shine with joy. “That’s great! Come to this address tomorrow, and meet everyone in the team. I’ll show the rest when you get there.” he hands him his name card.

“Fine. Fine. See you tomorrow.” Seungcheol waves at his friend who was now beaming.

“Thanks Cheol. I will forever be grateful to you!” Wonwoo waves back at him and leaves him alone in his house, contemplating whether the fake promise he has made to Wonwoo was a good idea. He doesn’t want to take this case. He just doesn't do celebrities. All the hassle, and obviously the fuzz that comes with the job, doesn’t appeal to him. He said it just to have Wonwoo leave him in peace.

He brings over his plate to the sink and starts rinsing it.

 _‘This week was supposed to be for my rest.’_ He sighs as he walks up the steps to his bedroom. As soon as he gets to his bed, he grabs his laptop and switches it on. Finally he'll be able to watch at least one out of the long list of movies he’d been delaying for months now.

*****

The morning sunlight was harsh and it was directly hitting his face. He hates the fact that he has to get up early today just to say no to Wonwoo at the end of the day. So he groans as he gets out of bed and drags himself to shower.

Seungcheol puts on his daily suit and checks himself in the mirror. He looks too young to be a bodyguard but he has been doing this for seven years. Not much time compared to others, but his skills has been proven to be exceptional by everyone he’s worked for and worked with. He has handled very high profile politicians as the pay was always good.

His phone rings. “Cheol, we have traced the number and it’s from someone within the Blue House.”

“Have you taken the information to the higher ups?”

“Not yet. But we will soon. We just thought you should know.”

“I’m not involved in this case anymore.” he walks away from the mirror towards the living room.

“Cheol, why are you letting this go? This is good money and I sure as hell think that you should stick to one client for good.”

“You know I don’t do that, Jun.”

“Whatever, Cheol. Just letting you know that this case with the Chwe’s might not be over yet.”

“I have a new client.” Seungcheol says as he wears his shoes.

“Already? It has only been a week Cheol.”

“My bills don’t take a rest, Jun.”

“Oh come on! You earn more than mine and Hao’s salaries combined. You know how much we earn being PSS.”

Seungcheol chuckles at this. “I know Jun. I’ve been there and it sucks.”

Jun started yelling at him through the speakers so he ends the call, chuckling to himself. He missed his best friends but being part of the Presidential Security Service was just not for him. Not after what happened in the past. It’s better to be like this, like a nomad with no permanent residence.

He grabs his keys from the counter and makes his way out the door - off to the Yoon’s residence.

*****

The area wasn’t new to Seungcheol. He drives around here all the time. Tall-fenced properties lined up the street. High profile celebrities and politicians own these houses and he has served a few of them. He reaches a tall gated archway after a while and sees a beat up intercom by the entrance. He hesitantly presses the button and waits for the security’s voice to confirm his identity.

“Can I help you?” comes the lazy voice of a man.

“My name is Park Myunho and I am here to see Mr. Yoon.” Seungcheol lies.

Just then, a grey Jeep parks a few meters away from him - which he found odd since people don’t usually park outside these tall fences, it wasn’t allowed plus it was a blind curve. Definitely a safety hazard.

“Uhhh, do you have an appointment?” the voice replies, bringing his attention back to the intercom.

“Yes I do.” he lies again.

The gates open letting his car in. _‘That was easy.’_

He looks at his rearview mirror and finds the Jeep gone from where it was parked earlier. So he shifts to drive - past the wide opened gates of the property.

It was a long driveway to the main entrance of the house, and it was lined with tall untended trees and shrubs. The house itself wasn’t as bad as the surroundings. It was basically a mansion, as expected. Looked like it has too many rooms with too many windows. The pool house was just beside the property fronting a well-designed and very luxurious swimming pool. A young boy, who looks like he’s about ten years old, was playing around with no supervision. Seungcheol already had his eyes on everything around him.

It was gonna be too much work, that one he’s sure of.

An SUV was parked by the main entrance of the house. One young looking guy, probably around 22, was cleaning it. He alights his vehicle, approaches the guy and notices one of his arms slung around with a cast.

“Hey, I’m Kim Dong-hyuk and I am here to see Mr Yoon.”

“Do you have an appointment?”

“Yeah. I do.”

The guy eyes him from head to toe but doesn’t pry much.

“Go ahead. Pass by the main entrance and turn to the right. They’re by the courtyard.”

Seungcheol nods and walks around the SUV. The main entrance was unlocked so he pushes the huge double doors open and lets himself in. Music and loud chatters filled his ears as he makes his way through the vast hallway towards the courtyard. There were dozens of people - running around, shouting orders, laughing, singing, dancing, doing just about everything. He scans the crowd, observing every single face in the area.

“Cheol! You came!” Wonwoo comes up from behind him and pats him on the shoulder.

“What’s all these, Won?”

“He’s rehearsing for a music video today.”

“In his house?”

“Yeah.” Wonwoo sighs and leads him towards the side to meet the team.

A tall guy stands up, and approaches the two of them.

“Any problem here, Won?” the guys asks, eyeing Seungcheol from head to toe.

“No Gyu, there is no problem.” Wonwoo turns around to look the guy in the eye. “This is Seungcheol, the one I’ve been talking to all of you about.”

“Aaahhh, so you’re that guy huh.” Mingyu stretches out his hand for Seungcheol. He’s not exactly sure what Wonwoo has told them. “Mingyu. Jeonghan’s head of security.”

Seungcheol hesitantly takes the guy’s hand and shakes it firmly. There’s obviously some tension between the two of them. “Choi Seungcheol.”

Mingyu finally lets go of the hand and went over to the side to talk to someone. Wonwoo, on the other hand approaches someone sitting on a chair, its back facing Cheol.

No, it’s not a chair. It looks more of like a throne - tall wingback in purple velvet cushion and gold-painted woodwork. The one seated on it was facing the dancers who were rehearsing in front of him.

Wonwoo looks like he’s arguing with the person. The music was too loud for them to understand each other, so the person behind the ‘throne’ suddenly shouts an order at whoever poor guy it was.

“Soonyoung! Cut the music!” the voice was loud and piercing. He exhales exaggeratedly and continues in a calm voice. “Soonyoungie, I like the choreo and everything, but my solo… my solo has to be a bit… sexier but fiercer… You get what I mean? Hmmm?”

The guy named Soonyoung nods in agreement and gathers his dancers to a corner for a meeting about the modifications.

“Now what is it that you want Jeon Wonwoo?” the diva snaps.

“I said Choi Seungcheol is here.” Wonwoo rolls his eyes.

“And who the hell is that?” he sounds so bratty Seungcheol wanted to smack his head right then and there.

*****

“We talked about this, Han. He’s your new bodyguard.” Wonwoo says through gritted teeth.

“Bodyguard. Okay. Then let him stand beside my throne and guard me while I eat my strawberries.” Jeonghan chuckles and the rest of the team did the same, save for Wonwoo. “Ants might steal it, you know?”

“Yoon Jeonghan!” Wonwoo snaps this time, his voice low and commanding. The room instantly fell quiet.

He can’t deal with a grumpy Wonwoo the whole day. He’s too busy and he can’t afford any delays. Wonwoo won’t shut up about it unless he complies.

“Fine! Fine! I’ll stand up now! Who is this Choi Seungshit anyway?” he stands up to make Wonwoo shut up.

Jeonghan turns around and his eyes widen in surprise. It might even be shining in delight but he didn’t bother to hide it. To be honest, he was a bit hesitant about this whole bodyguard thing. Like why does he need one? Mingyu is doing fine as overall security, there were no threats to his life, the incident at the club was an accident, Wonwoo is overreacting.

But if Wonwoo overreacting means he brings home hot guys for Jeonghan to spend 24/7 with, he hopes Wonwoo overreacts every freaking time.

 _‘Woooaaah.’_ The guy was hot hot hot. He’s got jet black hair, beautiful orbs, full lips and perfect skin.

_‘Damn he might as well be an idol. Or an actor. Maybe my leading man.’_

He’s a bit shorter than Mingyu but his body has the perfect built.

He undresses the guy in his mind, and he can picture his broad chest, perfect arms, most probably six pack abs and…

“JEONGHAN!” Wonwoo snaps him out of his thoughts.

“THE FUCK JEON! CHILL!” He snaps back, trying to recover from the shock. He approaches the hot guy and stretches his hand to shake. “So you’re my new bodyguard huh.” he smirks. “Perfect. I am Yoon Jeonghan, your angel. You can call me Jeonghan. Or baby. Whichever you prefer.”

The other guy sneers but takes his hand anyway. “Choi Seungcheol. I need to talk to you, Mr Yoon.”

“Mr Yoon? What am I your professor?” Jeonghan withdraws his hand from the hold and laughs while the whole crew laughs with him.

Mr Hot Guy doesn’t laugh, instead he replies seriously. “This is a very serious matter and I need your cooperation on every single thing regarding your security.”

_‘Ugh this guy is no fun. Hot but boring. Bland. Must be terrible in bed. Probably just missionary.’_

Herolls his eyes. “You can do whatever you want just as long as you don’t disrupt my schedule.” he waves his hand around to emphasize on the current rehearsal he was disrupting. “And most importantly, don’t bother Jeongsoo. I don’t want him to feel like he’s imprisoned. Okay?”

The guy looks at Wonwoo sternly and Wonwoo fidgets beside him.

 _‘Okay what the fuck was that all about?’_ Jeonghan raises his eyebrows at Wonwoo but his manager ignores him and turns away.

“Wonwoo, I need to talk to you.” Mr Hottie says after a few moments, to which Wonwoo only nods.

Jeonghan turns his back around to walk over his seat, trying to ignore Wonwoo’s careful movements as he walks out of the courtyard dragging Seungshit with him.

_'The fuck are those two being sneaky about?'_

 He takes a seat on his purple throne and looks over at his dancers.

“Kwon Soonyoung!! Are you fucking ready?!!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhh, the chapter might not be as fun as it should be. I don't know, what do you think? But I'm sure the next chapters will be fun and intriguing. I'll try to give justice to the movie! For now, this is it! I hope you enjoyed reading that. Next update will be tomorrow!
> 
> Thank you for giving this fic a chance! Love you all!


	2. Impatient and Hasty

Wonwoo introduces him to another hyperactive person, Lee Seokmin. Apparently he’s Jeonghan’s PR manager and he’s assigned for everything that has to do with shows, interviews, press releases, guestings, etc. They bring him to a huge bedroom on the second floor, too luxurious and definitely over the top.

The room was surrounded with wide french windows with champagne curtains drawn. There was a huge four-poster bed with the same gold painted woodwork as the ‘throne’. The sheets were a pale shade of lilac but still the same velvety texture. A huge crystal chandelier was hung in the middle that reflected two mirrored bedside tables that looked too fragile.

Seokmin hands him an unsealed A4 envelope. He lays the contents on the bed and looks at them one by one. These were hate fan mails, others were normal hate mails he imagined a celebrity would receive. But there were a number of disturbing ones. Most with drawings of a dead body or blood, some were filled with too many explicit words. But one particular hate mail caught his attention.

He picks the paper with his gloved hand and examines it carefully.

“When was this sent?” Seungcheol asks the both of them.

“Last week. During the scheduled show at the club.” Seokmin answered.

“That’s where the explosion happened. We found this secured in one of the gift boxes that managed to make it intact.” Wonwoo continues.

The page was filled with magazine cut outs - all neatly pasted to form a message.

**_“Yoon bitch. You’re no angel. You’ll be dead soon. See you in hell.”_ **

“Tell me more about the incident. What caused the explosion?”

“It was a 20cm doll.” Wonwoo replies. “The staff were collecting all the fan gifts and letters. But there were too many people so they weren’t able to control the crowd. They kept dropping the gifts inside the boxes that the staff were carrying around.”

“I instructed them to bring the boxes in a separate room since none of them were checked. We make it a habit to check them one by one before giving them to Jeonghan. We know all about the hate letters since two months ago, and we don’t want him stressed out.” Seokmin explains.

“Who are ‘we’?”

“Me and Joshua. He’s Jeonghan’s personal assistant.”

“Does Joshua know about all these?”

“Everyone knows.” Wonwoo replies.

“Except Jeonghan.” Seungcheol points out. Both of them nod.

“We told him that the explosion was caused by a leaking gas pipe.”

“I can’t protect him if he doesn’t know what I am protecting him from.” Seungcheol says sternly.

“Wonwoo, you know what happens if you tell Jeonghan. He will be hysterical.” Seokmin complains to Wonwoo directly.

“Cheol, is there another way?”

“No other way but my way. Either I handle everything or I handle nothing.”

“I will not let Jeonghan know about this!” Seokmin argues, but Wonwoo holds a hand to his face.

“Wait. Cheol. This is really something worrisome. Please.”

“You know how I work, Won. And if you can’t cooperate, then I’m sorry. This is why I don’t do celebrities. It’s too complicated.” he folds the piece of paper and places everything back inside the envelope. “Why are we in his room anyway?”

“This is not his room. I had it done just for the magazine.” Seokmin answers smugly, as if that is something to be proud of. “He sleeps in the room next to Jeongsoo’s.”

“Someone broke in, Cheol.” Wonwoo’s voice shakes. “Someone came to this room and masturbated here on this bed.”

His eyes narrow in disgust. “When was this? After or before the magazine feature?”

“After.” Seokmin gulps.

Seungcheol hands him the envelope and walks around - checking every nook and cranny.

“The house is too open.” he mutters.

“I’m sorry?” Seokmin exclaims.

“I said the house is too open. Anyone can come in. There are lots of people inside his private space. It can be anyone around you.” he replies calmly as he looks at the view from the window.

“These people are hired by me. I know every single one of them. They’ve been working for my clients for years.” Seokmin was now shouting, probably not liking how the conversation is going. “Won, we don’t need him. We can go find someone else.”

“I’m leaving Won. I’m sorry. I can’t work like this.” Seungcheol walks towards the door.

*****

He hears Wonwoo shouting by the hallway. Jeonghan turns his head around and sees his manager chasing the bodyguard.

“Cheol. No! Please!” Wonwoo runs after him and begs. “Please Cheol. I’ll tell him.”

“I can’t help people who doesn’t want to be helped, Won.”

“I’ll tell him!” Seokmin appears behind Wonwoo.

“Tell who what?” Jeonghan joins in the scene, arms crossed, and raises his eyebrows at the three of them.

“Jeonghan. Come, I’ll show you something.” Seokmin drags him across the courtyard and into the private office, leaving the bodyguard and his manager standing in the middle of the hallway. He looks at Seungcheol in the eyes, before completely disappearing into the office Seokmin led him to.

*****

Jeonghan woke up the next day with the sound of something drilling.

He checks his phone - it read 9:00 AM. _‘Who the fuck is drilling in my house at this hour?’_

“WONWOO!!” he screams and his bedroom door opens in an instant. Instead of Wonwoo, Joshua walks in, bringing him a breakfast tray.

“Good morning, your majesty.” Joshua smiles at the messy hair and sleepy face.

“Fuck you, Josh. Where is Wonwoo, and why are you the one bringing my breakfast?”

Joshua laughs at his best friend and takes a seat on Jeonghan’s bed to place the tray between them. “Wonwoo is downstairs with that new bodyguard and your servants are currently scrambling around receiving instructions from him.”

“Who the fuck does he think he is?” he takes a gulp of the orange juice. “And what is all the noise for?”

Joshua sighs. “I’ve been up since seven, Han. They’ve been installing security cameras everywhere, cutting trees, replacing the windows and basically reconstructing the entire house.”

“What?!”

“They said you gave them permission.”

“I told Seokmin I’m okay with new security alarms. I didn’t ask them for a house makeover!”

Joshua laughs. “It’s okay Han, it’s for your safety. Now eat your scones while they’re still freshly baked.” he pats him on the knee and turns to leave the room.

*****

Jeonghan tries so hard to focus on the magazine he’s reading. He’s lounging by the pool with his earphones on, but the sounds of hammering and drilling is piercing his ears. He slams the magazine down and heads over to Wonwoo, who was busy checking the new windows installed.

“WONWOO!” Wonwoo doesn’t turn around, the noise of everything probably drowning his voice. “JEON WONWOO! STOP IT! STOP IT!”

Wonwoo looks blankly at him. “You want me to ask him to stop? Are you okay eating in your dining room without windows?”

“Who even asked you to replace them? I said security system not new french windows!”

“Your windows need to be taken off, installed with an alarm system and put back on. That’s how it’s done.”

“Isn’t there some sensor or something?”

“That’s exactly what it is, Jeonghan. We are placing sensors.” Wonwoo still looked too bored to entertain him today.

He groans and stomps his feet on the pavement as he walks back to his house.

*****

“Why did you lie about your name?” Dino asks as he polishes the car for the nth time today.

Seungcheol slams a heavy case on the makeshift workstation. “I wanted to know how easy it was to get in.”

“It was damn easy, wasn’t it?” Dino stops polishing and walks over to him. Seungcheol only smiles at him.

“What’s that?” he points to the briefcase.

“What’s your job exactly? Wash cars and drive them around?” Seungcheol asks while trying to unlock the case.

“Yeah, basically just that.” Dino eyes him curiously. “Why are you asking?”

The case finally opens and Dino’s jaw drop open in shock.

“Because I have an additional task for you.” Seungcheol grabs one of the two steel guns from the case and locks the magazine in place. He hands it to Dino who was hesitant at first, but once he felt the heavy firearm in his grip, his face brightens.

“Coooooool.”

“I hope your arm is better. I have so much stuff to teach you.”

“Oh my arm is perfectly fine already! I swear!” he answers with too much enthusiasm.

Seungcheol chuckles as he grabs the other gun and inspects it. “Okay. Good. 1:00 PM later, get the car ready.”

*****

Dino was prompt. At 1:00PM, he was already seated at the driver’s seat waiting for Seungcheol. He doesn’t exactly know what he’s waiting for. All he knows is that it involved guns - and guns were fun. Yeah yeah, cars are toys for the big boys. But guns are toys for the bigger boys and he’s so damn excited.

Seungcheol arrives a minute later carrying nothing.

“Hyung, where’s your briefcase?” Dino asks with a pout.

“What briefcase?” Seungcheol approaches the driver seat.

Chan looks up at him, still pouty. “The one with the... **makes gun motions with fingers**”

“We are not learning that today.” Dino’s jaw drops open. He looked so disheartened. “At least not yet.” His eyes brighten. “I am teaching you how to drift.” He looks confused.

_‘God, this kid. Pray this works.’_

 

A few hours after, Dino was driving like a maniac but this time with precision. His voice was too loud as he screams in excitement at every turn he makes.

“Okay now slow down here and try to make an abrupt stop without hitting the barrier.” Seungcheol shouts over the excited kid.

Dino licks his lips in concentration as the curve approaches, he slows the car down a little and makes an abrupt stop, car door an inch away from the barrier.

“Yeaaaheeeeeeehh! Dino bounces in his seat hands in the air. Seungcheol chuckles and pats Dino’s shoulder.

“You’re good. Be ready for the next lesson next week.”

“Next week when?” Dino perks up like an attentive dog.

“I’ll tell you when you’re ready.” Seungcheol opens the car door and steps out onto the driveway. He leaves Dino, who was still beaming with joy, and walks over to the main house and straight to the kitchen.

 

Mingyu was there, having a glass of apple juice it seems. He’s staring directly at him since he went in but Seungcheol ignores him. He has no time for petty rivalry.

“I will still do things my way, you understand?” Mingyu says out of nowhere as Seungcheol lifts his glass of water to his mouth.

“Wonwoo promised to have everything under my control and that includes you.” Seungcheol looks at him, expressionless.

“You’re new here. I’ve been with Jeonghan since he started.”

“Years huh?”

“Yes. Years.”

“Then you must be doing a shitty job for them to hire me when they’ve had you for years.” Seungcheol rinses his glass and places it on the rack. He leaves the kitchen with an enraged Mingyu.

_‘Petty indeed. Egotistic. Incompetent.’_

*****

Jeonghan thought he looked his best tonight. Even after all the stress the whole day, he managed to get himself ready for the show tonight. It’s finally his third album launch - the first one ever held in that highly sought out venue. It's in a secluded club, an exclusive event with his dear fans, who were handpicked by the events organizer. Oh it would be a fun night tonight, that he was sure of. He puts on his finishing touch, a purple velvet choker, that sits perfectly well with his lilac top. He sprays perfume on his wrist and neck and starts his way down the steps.

Seokmin was waiting for him by the foot of the staircase, a long coat with a hood draped over his arm. “You look absolutely perfect tonight!” his PR manager exclaims proudly.

“Hannie, which bag do you prefer?” Joshua comes in bringing three velvet clutches.

“Oh I don’t need a bag, Joshy. Thank you.” he smiles at his best friend while taking the coat from Seokmin, draping it over his body.

Just then, Mr Hottie comes in from the pool house, eyes scanning them all. “What is all these? Where are you going?”

“To the album launch at the Baccarat.” Seokmin says, focusing on fixing Jeonghan’s coat, eyes avoiding Seungcheol.

“Wonwoo, what is this?” Seungcheol looks at his manager who just came in, wearing an unreadable expression.

“The album launch, I thought Seokmin informed you.”

“Oh it must have slipped my mind.” Seokmin replies nonchalantly.

“No one informed me! I don’t even know where this Baccarat is!” Seungcheol was furious.

“I know where it is so don’t worry.” Mingyu comes up behind him with a smug look on his face.

Jeonghan looked unbothered. As soon as Seokmin finishes fixing his coat, he steps out of the front door to Dino’s waiting SUV. Seungcheol takes the front passenger seat while Mingyu and Joshua sit on both of Jeonghan's sides. Seokmin drives with Wonwoo on the way to whatever place they are going.

*****

As expected, the place was packed. People knew Jeonghan was going to appear in tonight’s private event, so the waiting crowd outside was crazy. Though there was security manning the place, Seungcheol was totally unsure about the situation.

Usually, in cases like this, if his client has a schedule, he would request a layout of the place, make a personal visit, and check the place for any obstruction or safety hazards. He would scan every single space until he’s assured of the client’s safety.

The security who appears to be assigned in opening the door for guests approached the SUV. But Seungcheol got out immediately and motioned the guy to stand back. He opens the car door instead and helps Joshua alight first.

Jeonghan alights after but he doesn’t walk straight to the front door. Instead, he stands in the middle of the red carpet, exposed to the crowd and waves to all of his waiting fans. Seungcheol was livid.

_‘Why the fuck is he putting himself at total risk right now?!’_

A guy tried to go over the barrier and Mingyu pushes the guy off the red carpet. Seungcheol stands near Jeonghan trying to push behind every single fansite camera that was pointing too close at Jeonghan. It was too noisy and chaotic. Seungcheol motions over at Wonwoo, who just arrived with Seokmin, to bring Jeonghan inside immediately.

As soon as Wonwoo stands beside him, Jeonghan, who was totally oblivious to the entire situation that his bodyguard and security were facing, beams at everyone before blowing kisses and finger hearts at his fans. The crowd went rowdier and crazier, while Seungcheol keeps his hold on Jeonghan’s shoulder until they were safe and secluded inside the building’s walls.

*****

“Hey Cheol. I want to go to the restroom, are you coming with me too?” Jeonghan mocks his bodyguard. He’s so fucking pissed. Like what the fuck does this guy think he’s doing?

Seungcheol loosens his hold on Jeonghan’s arm and looks at him straight in the eyes. He doesn’t laugh or smile or sneer. He just looks at him sternly, not expressionless but more like challenging him. He’s intimidating.

Jeonghan ignores his bodyguard’s bullshit so he walks down the hallway towards the dressing room Seokmin has arranged for him. Everyone follows behind him, all excited about the album that they were so sure was going to be a big hit.

 

The dressing room wasn’t bad. It was spacious with two three-seater sofas, a huge glam mirror and a very comfortable looking swivel chair. It also has a fridge filled with sodas and juices.

On the desk and counter were three extravagant flower arrangements. One has an open card that says congratulations and it was from the Baccarat itself. The other two had envelopes on them.

“Who put these here?” Joshua asks with a serious expression on his face.

“Uh, that was delivered this morning, so we decided to set it up before Jeonghan arrives.” the club manager looked confused. He thought the gesture would be appreciated.

“We check every single gift, fan letter and flowers given to him. I thought I made that clear to you?” Seokmin grits his teeth at the club manager.

Wonwoo grabs all three cards and stuffs it in his bag. But Jeonghan was quick to notice it and asks Wonwoo to give it to him. Everyone in the room was tensed, including his bodyguard who was carefully watching the scene unfolding in front of him.

“I said give it to me, Jeon.” Jeonghan says loudly, hands outstretched in Wonwoo’s direction.

He scans the faces of the people around him. Joshua and Wonwoo were expressionless, Seungcheol looked even more intimidating and strict. While Seokmin, well… Seokmin was sweating. Wonwoo reaches for the envelopes inside his bag and hands them to Jeonghan, expression unchanging.

Joshua clears his throat and proceeds to instruct the makeup artist on the lineup for tonight and when Jeonghan needs a retouch. Seokmin melts in the background. Wonwoo walks over to the couch as Jeonghan takes a seat on the swivel chair and lets go of an exasperated sigh.

He tears the flap of the first envelope and smiles at the note. It was from Seungkwan. As always, of course, peonies and roses were his signature statement. He never fails to send him wishes of good luck.

“Shua, can you please schedule a flower delivery for Seungkwan tomorrow? Just put in a thank you note.” Jeonghan calls over to his best friend from his seat.

“Okay! Will do!” Joshua replies back and continues fixing his second outfit for tonight by the rack.

 

He tries to tear the flap of the second envelope with great difficulty. It looks like it was pasted with glue rather than the usual adhesive that’s applied on the envelope beforehand. So he tears it from the side, careful to not tear the note inside.

It seems to be a plain A4 sized paper, folded in four. He unfolds it and finds magazine lettering cut outs forming a short message.

**_“Yoon bitch. I’ll eventually get you. Your time is soon.”_ **

Jeonghan reads everything thrice, not seemingly getting the message at first. But when it dawned on him that it was a hate letter, a death threat actually, Jeonghan drops the paper and screams.

Joshua automatically fled to his side, eyes wide, as Jeonghan looks at the paper by his feet like it was something that will explode anytime soon. Seokmin and Wonwoo follows and the latter picks it up, while Seungcheol casually walks over to take a peek.

 

“It’s the same one.” Wonwoo mutters as he passes it on to Seungcheol.

“What do you mean it’s the same one?! There was another one??” Jeonghan was terrified.

“Seokmin, I thought you told him?” Wonwoo glares at Seokmin who was starting to redden.

“I was gonna tell him after tonight! I didn’t want to ruin everything! This is the album release for god’s sake!” Seokmin whines.

The door to the dressing room opens and a staff comes carrying flowers. Seungcheol pushes the staff out of the dressing room and yells at Mingyu who was standing outside the room.

“When I say watch the door I mean watch the fucking door!! No flowers! No staff! Nothing!” he was seething with anger and Mingyu just glares back at him.

“Tell me what’s happening?!” Jeonghan’s voice was high but obviously shaky.

Wonwoo’s phone beeps. “The show will start in five minutes.”

“Oh for god’s sake! There is no show tonight!” Seungcheol exclaims.

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” Seokmin directs it at Seungcheol. “I’ve been working on this for months and you tell me there is no fucking show?!”

“It is risky! You fucking know that!” Joshua joins the now intense discussion.

“Risky my ass! It’s just a hate letter! Every single artist gets one!” his PR manager defends and Jeonghan doesn’t know who to listen to.

“Then how do you explain the house incident huh?”

“What house incident?!” Jeonghan interrupts the two. “Someone was in my house?! SOMEONE WAS IN MY FUCKING HOUSE?? And I didn't fucking know?!” he could no longer take all these information. He collapses on the chair and puts his head between his palms.

 

“Call Dino. Ask him to get the car ready.” Wonwoo instructs Joshua. “I’ll go make the announcement on stage. You all go straight to the car. I’ll drive back with Seokmin.”

Joshua makes the call as Mingyu opens the door to let everyone out. Seungcheol never left Jeonghan’s side. He puts a hovering protective arm over his shoulders at all times.

 

Wonwoo makes his way towards the stage, trying to gain the courage to announce the unfortunate news that the show was going to be cancelled. Seokmin, on the other hand, wanted to punch everything and everyone in his way.

The crowd cheers seeing Wonwoo step out on the stage. But as soon as Wonwoo announces the bad news and explains the situation, the crowd starts to boo. The disappointment echoed in the entire venue and Jeonghan couldn’t take it. He can’t stand hearing his name with these downhearted chants.

 

“I’m going out there!” Jeonghan said. “I am not gonna let all of you ruin this! I don’t even know what kind of shit you all are pulling but I am not gonna let you ruin this event!”

 

He pulls out of Joshua’s hold with force. He runs up to the center of the stage and puts his arm around Wonwoo’s waist. The crowd went crazy. Purple rose-shaped lightsticks lit up the entire venue and everyone was screaming his name.

This is what he wants. This is what he deserves.

 

“Good evening everyone!” Jeonghan waves at the crowd. “This is my manager, Wonwoo. Such an amazing man!” he chuckles.

“You see, I asked him to come out here and prank all of you.” the crowd reacts wildly as he laughs with them. “I see. I see. He got you. Isn’t he amazing?” there was a loud exclaim of agreement.

 

“But tonight we will all have even more fun!” he takes his coat off to reveal his simple but sexy outfit, a personal choice of his - tight black pants, dark shoes, loose lilac top with a sheer belt around his waist and a purple velvet choker around his neck. “I am Jeonghan and welcome to my third album release!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the second chapter I promised! I hope I did not disappoint you all. I will be posting the third chapter either tomorrow or on Thursday. I hope you'll stay with me till the end. Thank you so much for giving this fic a chance!
> 
> Love you!
> 
> -A❤️


	3. No, Don't Cry Now

The stage was low. It was just about as high as his waist, and someone could easily come up if they dare. From where Seungcheol was standing the lights were reflected too bright, temporarily blinding him at some point. He sees Jeonghan ready himself at the backstage for his performance, testing his microphone and in-ear while the crowd was again chanting his name.

Seungcheol watches the activities closely. He’s scanning every face in the pit and finds one particular guy odd. Despite everyone cheering and waving their purple rose-shaped lightsticks, he was standing in the middle, clutching the same lightstick, but unmoving. His hair was long and his expression was blank.

He sees Mingyu on the other end of the backstage, talking to Wonwoo animatedly. Seungcheol tries to catch his eyes but fails, so he focuses his attention back on stage. There were two guys on both sides manning the lighting equipment, one guy at the center of the crowd assigned to a camera with one staff beside him, and another camera director was moving freely near the stage.

After some time, it seems like everything was set and Soonyoung leads his dancers on stage. Music starts playing and Jeonghan, despite the mood set by the club, starts singing a sensual song. His voice was smooth and silky - almost  too tempting and sexy. If only Seungcheol appreciated modern music, he would probably be a fan.

Jeonghan looked so into it - with the facial expressions, matching the sweet voice and the almost provocative dance moves - not even the back up dancers seem to match up to his sultriness. A second later, Jeonghan was on the floor moving his legs and arms in sync to the music, and that looked complicated to Seungcheol. He spins and he’s back up again, moving his hips with the music. The crowd goes wild.

Seungcheol was momentarily dazed. But he focuses his attention back to the crowd, not affording to get distracted. Everyone seemed to be enjoying, screaming their lungs out, waving their lightsticks. Some were trying to stretch their hands far up the stage as much as they could. But Jeonghan was positioned by the middle so it was fine.

 Mingyu was now walking beside the stage, near the floor camera director. It should be all good. But Seungcheol never relaxed himself. He shouldn’t. Not with the culprit being in the venue.

 

The music finally stopped. Soonyoung and the back up dancers walk out of the stage, leaving Jeonghan in the middle. It seems like he’s not yet done. Another song number, he says.

Music starts to play, this time an upbeat one. He claps his hands while moving his hips. He's singing something about sadness disappearing like snow melting. Seungcheol doesn't listen to the lyrics, he's focused on Jeonghan who was now moving near the edge of the stage, too close to the outstretched hands of the crowd.

Out of nowhere, one guy jumps onto the stage, startling Jeonghan. He doesn't approach the singer but instead just dances in the corner. Mingyu approached the guy to pull him back down but Jeonghan stopped him and continued singing.

 

Not long after another guy comes up the stage. Seungcheol moves forward but Jeonghan turns to stare at him, immediately stopping him as well.

Because of the two people already up stage dancing with Jeonghan, more people joined immediately until there was a crowd of about fifteen people dancing upstage. They circle around him though never touching or getting too close. But Jeonghan was overwhelmed so he moved and moved and moved and the next thing he knew, he fell off the stage and into the hands of the people in the pit. He was crowd surfing, but it just didn’t feel right. Jeonghan looks panicked.

 

Mingyu immediately pushes people away while Seungcheol jumps on the stage then down to the pit. He gets to the center and grabs Jeonghan, carrying him in his arms. Mingyu was still pushing past the people who were trying to grab Jeonghan.

“Cheol, meet me at the front! The car is ready!” Mingyu shouts over the crowd’s noise. But Seungcheol doesn’t listen to him. Instead, he runs towards the back door of the club.

Jeonghan grabbed onto his neck and hides his face on Seungcheol’s chest sobbing, as he jogs down the dark hallway. He kicks the back door open, revealing a secluded alleyway, an SUV waiting for them. Dino rushes to open the door.

As soon as Jeonghan was seated, Seungcheol goes in to sit beside him.

“Drive! Straight to home!” Dino nods and starts the car. Seungcheol takes off his coat to drape over Jeonghan’s shivering frame. He keeps an arm around his shoulders the entire drive, trying to comfort him the best that he could.

 

*****

They arrived at the mansion half an hour later and Dino opens the door for them as Seungcheol lifts Jeonghan off the seat. Their phones kept ringing and beeping but Seungcheol ignores them. “Dino, you let them know Jeonghan is safe. Maybe you can go back to fetch Joshua and the rest.” the young driver nods and proceeds to the driver seat, starting the car again to leave the property.

As Seungcheol makes his way up the stairs, Jeonghan tightens his hold on him. He’s shaking and sobbing, and Jeonghan never felt more pathetic than he was right now. Seungcheol was silent. From the moment they left the club until they arrived, Seungcheol didn't say anything to him - save for several words and instructions he uttered to Dino. He just held him protectively the entire time - no judgment or criticism.

Not wanting to admit it just yet, Jeonghan felt secured and safe in his arms.

They reach the second floor landing and Seungcheol lets him down on his feet. “Are you okay to stand up?” he asks him after a moment. He nods in response.

“I want to check on Jeongsoo… to make sure he’s okay.”

“Okay.” Seungcheol walks him to his brother’s room, arm around his waist but untouching. He opens the door to reveal Jeongsoo sleeping soundly. He felt extreme relief. That was all that matters now. His brother was safe and he was at home with him, also perfectly safe.

He walks over to his bedroom door slowly, expecting Seungcheol to follow him. But he doesn’t. Instead, his bodyguard walks down the steps, leaving Jeonghan confounded outside his bedroom door.

 

“Cheol…” Jeonghan mutters, voice still shaky, making Seungcheol stop in his tracks. “...would you wait in my room till I fall asleep?”

Breaths were held, none of them moves. It was like they were frozen in time. It was starting to get overwhelming, and Jeonghan felt worried and scared. A suppressed sob escaped his lips. Hearing this, Seungcheol almost immediately ran to him and enveloped him in a warm embrace. He feels the door open behind him as Seungcheol half-carries him to his walk-in wardrobe.

“Go get changed. I’ll wait beside your bed.” his voice was different. It wasn’t the same stern, cold and almost stoic tone. It was soft and warm, and Jeonghan felt assured.

He removes the coat draped over him, realizing it wasn’t his. He strips the rest of his clothes down and changes into his silk pajamas. He then walks to his bed, not even bothering to remove his makeup.

Seungcheol was standing by his bedside, not moving at all. He walks over to face him.

“Thank you… Cheol… I’m sorry… I didn’t know…” Seungcheol doesn’t say anything. He just looks at him, expressionless. Jeonghan was frustrated but he doesn’t let it get to him. “I promise to cooperate from now on. Just…” he chokes on a sob. “Just keep me safe. And Jeongsoo too.”

He was crying now, all the suppressed fear and frustrations flowing out of his system.

“I’m scared. I need you, Cheol. Please… I’ll do anything.” Seungcheol doesn’t answer, instead he holds his hand and lead him towards the bed, making him sit. He never lets go of his hand until he calmed down, eventually making him lay down. He hears a chair getting dragged across the room and it stopped just by his bedside. Seungcheol drapes the blanket over his shoulders, tucking him in.

"Go to sleep. I'll be here till you sleep." Seungcheol mutters softly to him as he closes his eyes.

In the silent night, he hears Seungcheol's soft and even breathing.

He felt like nothing could go wrong as long as Seungcheol was beside him.

Jeonghan finally casts all his worries aside and wills himself to sleep.

 

*****

 

The apples in this house were way better than the ones he usually buys from the grocery store. Seungcheol figured rich people probably buy premium fruits only from rich people’s markets. He retrieves a small knife and a plate from the drawer and starts peeling and slicing.

The kitchen island was also convenient. It was a perfect height, just until above his waist. He doesn’t even need a bar stool. Tonight turned out to be eventful. He sighs... When he thought he would be staying in the pool house the whole evening, watching another episode of Revenge, his favorite American TV show.

 

Just then, the door to the kitchen slams open and someone runs to him with full speed, fists aiming at his face. But Seungcheol was faster so he steps aside and watches Mingyu fall to the kitchen floor in front of him. Seungcheol lifts his plate to move to the kitchen counter by the stove as Mingyu stands up to dust his pants.

“You humiliated me - made me look stupid.” Mingyu was seething with anger.

“I told you. I do things my way.”

Mingyu attempts another hit on Seungcheol’s face, but the latter avoids it while pushing Mingyu’s arm towards the direction of the counter. Mingyu’s face hit the cupboard, slicing the skin on his forehead by half an inch.

He grabs the plate from the counter and moves back to the island, slicing more of the apple on his hand. He takes a bite and decides to sit on the bar stool, not bothering about the guy breathing heavily behind him.

 

Mingyu wasn’t done yet. “I told you to fucking meet me at the front. Instead I’m left at the club not knowing anything about Jeonghan’s whereabouts.” From behind him, he hears a kitchen knife getting pulled from its stand.

Seungcheol doesn’t waste a second. He turns around and throws the small knife towards Mingyu. It lands solid on the cupboard, just about an inch beside Mingyu’s ear.

“Don’t talk like you care about Jeonghan. You only care about your ego.” He says calmly.

Seungcheol walks out of the kitchen, leaving a stunned Mingyu with a slightly bleeding forehead. He heads towards the pool house, a plate of completely sliced apple in his hands.

 

Finally, he can watch Revenge.

 *****

 

_Meanwhile, back at the Baccarat, a long-haired guy picks up a purple velvet choker from the floor. He takes a good sniff of it beforekeeping it securely in his coat’s inner pocket._

 

*****

Jeonghan woke up with a splitting headache. He sees Wonwoo tending to his wardrobe as deliveries arrived.

“Good morning, Han. How are you?”

“Wonwoo, why are you doing that? Where’s Joshua?”

“He’s not feeling well. I let him sleep some more.”

“Is he alright?” Jeonghan gets up to take his robe from the rack.

“Yeah, I bet he’s just stressed about last night as well.” Wonwoo hangs the dress shirts they ordered from Dior and Gucci. “Are you alright, Han?”

Jeonghan nods as he ties the strings around his waist. “Can we all have breakfast downstairs? I don’t feel like eating in bed today.”

“Of course, Han. Do you want me to call Joshua as well?”

“Nah, it’s alright. He can rest. Ask someone to bring him breakfast though.”

“I already had it arranged. Don’t worry.” Wonwoo smiles at him as he turns to walk to his bathroom, anxious about the fact that he didn’t remove his makeup last night. _‘Fuck. I hope I won’t have breakouts.’_

 

*****

Doing his daily morning routine of checking around the property, Seungcheol passes by Joshua’s ground level room. The assistant was sitting by the small patio outside his bedroom’s double french door. His feet makes crunching noises as he steps on dried leaves, startling the guy from what he’s doing.

“Good morning.” Seungcheol mutters. “Sorry I startled you.”

Joshua was wide-eyed, hand on his chest. “Oh my god.” he sighs. “Good morning. No, It’s okay. Don’t worry about it.” he finally smiles at him.

Seungcheol’s attention shift to the photo album on his lap. It seems like Joshua was looking at it before he arrived.

“May I take a seat with you?”

“Yeah of course. Please.” Joshua offers the seat beside him.

“Is that you?” Seungcheol points to a photo of a kid, maybe around six years old, standing on stage.

“Yeah. Just looking at some good old memories.” Joshua smiles while scanning the album on his lap. “I’m always so busy, I sometimes forget who I am, or who I was.” he moves the album on top of the patio table so Seungcheol can have a look at them.

“You sing too?”

“Yeah, my parents signed me up for every singing competition there was.” he laughs at the memory. “That’s how I met Jeonghan. His parents did the same, and we met at one particular singing competition.” 

Joshua flips the page and photos of two kids singing beside each other were scattered.

“Is that Jeonghan?” Seungcheol asked curiously.

“Yeah.” he smiles. “We both placed second in this.” he points to a photo of him and Jeonghan holding hands. They looked like they were probably ten years old.

“You’ve been best friends for so long?”

Joshua nods. “Since we were nine. We just both loved singing. It’s like there was nothing else we’d rather do.”

“But why didn’t you pursue a singing career?”

Joshua looked solemn, like he was reminiscing. “The career I wanted didn’t want me.” he smiled. “I tried. We both tried. But isn’t it obvious who fit better for the job?”

He continues scanning the photo albums, stopping every now and then to look at something a little bit longer. He chuckles every now and then, seemingly remembering some funny memory.

 

Seungcheol’s phone rings, distracting Joshua from his musings. It was Jeonghan. He picks up the call and walks away, waving at Joshua who just nods and smiles back at him.

“Cheol... where are you?”

“I am having a look around the property.”

“Can I talk to you for a bit?”

“Yeah. Sure. Go on.” he continues walking, reaching the back of the house. It was what they called the backyard. But for Seungcheol, it looked like the woods. It was a vast expanse of land with tall trees that scattered for yards and yards. If not for the tall concrete fence by the end of the stretch and the winding cobblestone pathways, Seungcheol would definitely think he was in the forest.

“No. I mean… talk to you in person if that’s alright.” Jeonghan almost whispers.

“I’ll just finish making my morning rounds. I am at the back right now. I’ll message Wonwoo when I’m done.”

“Ah, no it’s fine. I’ll go there then.” Jeonghan’s breath was starting to get heavy. “I am having my morning jog anyway.” The call ends and Seungcheol turns around looking for any sign of Jeonghan. There was none.

Suddenly, someone startles him from the opposite side. He jumps a little and Jeonghan huffs out a breath and a laugh.

*****

“Did I scare you?”

“No.” Seungcheol looks at him. “I am actually more scared about the fact that you might ask me to jog with you right now.”

_‘Oh. Was that a joke?’_ Jeonghan looked at him in confusion. _‘He jokes! He knows how to joke! Definitely a good sign.’_

Jeonghan laughs a minute too late, making Seungcheol blush pink. _‘Oh my goood?!’_

“Okay. That was terrible.” Jeonghan says in between laughs.

“I know.” Seungcheol just smiles, probably amused at his reaction.

They both eventually fell quiet as they make their way further to the back of the property. Jeonghan was the first one to break the silence.

“Cheol. I just wanted to say thank you… for last night.”

There was a moment of total dead air before Seungcheol finally responds. “You don’t need to thank me. I am paid to protect you. It’s my job.”

Jeonghan knows it’s true but he doesn’t want to think of it that way. So he doesn’t say anything regarding that.

“I just want to tell you that I’ll fully cooperate from now on. Have you follow me around if you have to. Have you change anything in this house if there’s still something missing.” he waves around to emphasize.

“I’m just scared.” he stops walking.

Seungcheol halts as well. “Don’t worry. I am the best at what I do.”

He looks into Seungcheol's eyes, searching. “I know.”

 

Jeonghan starts walking again, and Seungcheol follows him.

His mind was starting to go haywire. He practiced in the shower earlier today, on how to tell him what he had been thinking all morning. But Jeonghan’s mind can’t seem to process well. He mentally slaps himself and curses at how pathetic he sounds in his mind right now.

“Umm, Cheol…” he walks backwards facing his bodyguard. “I was wondering…” he gulps and Seungcheol looks at him curiously. “Because you know how outgoing of a person I am. I usually love to spend my weekends going out and stuff…”

He looks at him for any reaction. Seungcheol gave him none. So he continues. “If I go out on dates right... I can’t have you standing behind me, scaring my date before I even get to have my dinner…”

Seungcheol stops walking and Jeonghan does the same, too abruptly, making him lose his balance a little. He waits for a response, but it never came. Seungcheol just stood there waiting for him to continue. _‘Fuck. He wants me to do all the talking.’_

“I mean… I’m willing to cooperate. But how can I even bring a man or a woman home, or vice versa, if you’re always there.”

His bodyguard finally speaks. “You know I can’t compromise. If you said cooperate, then that means full cooperation.”

“I know. I know…” Jeonghan rolls his eyes. “It’s just impossible with you around, you know that right?”

Seungcheol stayed still and silent. _‘Ugh, fuck this.’_

 

“So… I was wondering…” he shifts the weight on his feet nervously. “Since it’s impossible to have that kind of arrangement…”

 

Jeonghan inhales all the air around him and exhales it loudly before saying the words he’d been holding.

 

“Why don’t you take me out instead?”

*****

Okay. Definitely not the question Seungcheol was expecting. But okay. What was he supposed to answer to that.

 

Thankfully, Joshua appears out of nowhere.

“Jeonghan, Wonwoo is looking for you. It’s regarding the concert next week.”

“Concert?” that totally caught Seungcheol’s attention.

“Seokmin and Wonwoo will tell you all the details back at the house. Don’t worry.” Joshua answers him and Seungcheol nods.

“I’ll go first, Cheol.” Jeonghan waves at him with a coy expression. “You can continue with your rounds. But… think about it. Please.” he turns around and heads over the house.

 

Joshua stays for a moment, looking at him and Jeonghan curiously. It seems he wanted to ask what that was about, but instead he stares at Seungcheol’s eyes for a bit longer, his face void of expression, before turning around chasing after his best friend.

 

Seungcheol was in a major dilemma. Handling celebrities was never his thing. He was right to swerve away from it.

If it wasn’t for Wonwoo… 

Fuck, it was more difficult than he thought it would be. This has to be the toughest job he has ever agreed on. He’s almost too sure of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay wow. I was supposed to update it tomorrow but...  
> JEONGHAN WAS WEARING COUPS' HOODIE FROM TTT AND I WAS INSPIIIIIRED. ଘ(੭ˊᵕˋ)੭* ੈ✩‧₊˚
> 
> So here you go with an update - Chapter 3. And I think I might be able to update Chapter 4 tomorrow. Hopefully. Pray for me. Hahaha I'll start writing the next one as soon as I finish posting this.
> 
> Also...  
> If you haven't yet, you can read my previous one entitled "Show Him Who's Boss".  
> If you like this fic, please do drop a kudos or share it with your Carat friends.  
> Comments are very much appreciated too! .･ﾟﾟ･(／ω＼)･ﾟﾟ･.
> 
> PS. I have not proofread this. So if anything sounds wrong... please ignore any mistakes, grammatical errors, typos, misspelling, etc.
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you so much! (◕‿◕)♡


	4. Tell Me Everything

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right... Another chapter for today.
> 
> Would love to know your thoughts on this one, as I am slowly getting worried about how this story goes. I am kinda nervous about the direction that I am taking with this story, so I hope you can help me out on this.
> 
> Thank you! I hope you enjoy this short chapter. 
> 
> -A♡

“It’s a three-night charity concert at The Executive Tower next week from Friday till Sunday.” Wonwoo starts. “This was scheduled way before all of these happened. So we really can’t back out now.”

“Besides, you can request from the hotel’s management the layout of the entire venue. We have already informed them about the need to coordinate with Jeonghan’s personal security team. So that shouldn't be a problem.” Seokmin continues.

“What else aside from the concert? Any other activities? Where will he stay? Where will the team stay?”

“Everyone will be staying in the executive suite. It has multiple bedrooms so Jeonghan will stay in the main bedroom. Wonwoo, Seokmin and I can stay in one room. While you, Mingyu and Dino can share the other.” Joshua says. “We can get a separate room from the suite, but I imagine that you don’t want to be staying far from Jeonghan.” The tone in Joshua’s statement was with implication and Seungcheol caught on it. But he pretended he didn’t.

“There will be a private party on the receiving area of the suite on the first night. It’s big enough to house fifty people.” Wonwoo continues. “I wish we could cancel but these are all with celebrities and their teams who RSVPed months ago. Some even cancelled events, etc just to attend this.”

Seungcheol closes his eyes and leans against the couch. He can’t believe the lifestyle of these people - constantly putting themselves in danger even after all the threats. But he can’t do anything about it now, can he?

He opens his eyes and finds Jeonghan looking at him with a gloomy expression. He seems to not be excited about it as he usually would be about parties.

“Give me the contact details of all the teams who will be working on this. Lights, sounds, venue, events organizer, kitchen, hotel staff, everything. I will have a look into it the whole week.”

He sees Jeonghan’s face brighten a little. It was enough for him to be motivated. He stands up and leaves everyone in the living room.

_‘Can this day get any more stressful than it already is?’_

*****

Dino grabs the gun from the counter in front of him and positions himself. He wants to pretend he’s a pro but Seungcheol would kick his ass if he doesn’t do it properly.

“Finger off the trigger, Dino!” Seungcheol instructs. “Not too fast.”

He sighs. He doesn’t like to take it slow. All week he has been waiting for this. It’s been hours and all Seungcheol taught him was how to stand firmly, pick up the gun with precision, fit the magazine with an expert slide, hold it in his hands and put it back down. He wants to fire bullets.

“You will get to it. If you get the hang of all these, I assure you you’ll hit the target easily.” Seungcheol says as he kicks Dino’s left calf lightly to balance his stance.

“It’s not like I don’t trust you, hyung. I’m just excited.” Dino pouts.

“Do it five more times, then we’ll get to shooting.” he chuckles as Dino bounces in excitement like a kid. “But do it properly or else we’ll start from square one.”

“Yes hyung!” he ejects the magazine from the gun, places the steel on the table and walks away from the counter. He readies himself as Seungcheol counts to five.

On his signal, Dino runs towards the counter, stops abruptly and balances himself while grabbing the gun and sliding its magazine perfectly. He points at no particular target while assuring his fingers are placed perfectly around the steel.

“Good!” Seungcheol claps. “That’s how you do it! See? It’s easy right?” he pats Dino’s back. “Now do it the same way four more times and we’ll get to shooting.”

Dino was so freaking happy. It was music to his ears.

 

Training was over by four in the afternoon. Dino was exhausted but it doesn’t change the fact that he’s also overly happy. Seungcheol was right, he could hit his targets better now that he knows the proper way of handling everything. Being his first time, he wasn’t bad at all.

He didn’t have time to wash the car today because of their training. So they decided to pass by the car wash station. There’s a fast food restaurant beside it and Seungcheol offered to order and pay for the food as a congratulatory gift to Dino for doing really well.

He sits by the window, observing the SUV get properly polished. Even the interior is getting cleaned up. A long-haired guy, wearing overalls, with the car wash logo on the upper left of his chest, emerges from the passenger seat, clutching a folded up piece of paper. Dino can’t properly see what it is, but he doesn’t remember having left anything valuable in the car.

He was suddenly interrupted by Seungcheol bringing over a tray of food on their table. As soon as he looks back, the long-haired guy was gone. He shrugs it off as nothing important and proceeds to tear the paper off his burger.

“Thanks hyung!”

 

*****

 

_He opens his locker and unfolds the paper. It was a poster of Jeonghan from the event at the Baccarat, probably hastily discarded after the night’s event. He grabs a double-sided tape from the tool box and pastes the poster on his locker door, beside the hanging purple choker. A smile forms on his lips as he looks at all the cutouts and photos pasted inside his locker. The collection of his dreams._

_He hears someone step in the staff lounge. He slams his locker shut and types in the code._

_‘1004’._

_‘Locked’._

 

*****

 

The movie was terrible, to be honest. But Jeonghan doesn’t complain. It did have some sort of deeper meaning to it - about a warrior who sacrificed himself to save his friend. He lost one leg and lived a life with difficulty, while the friend he saved got married and lived a normal one. He was forgotten and eventually he kills himself. It was sad, devastating. And it’s totally not Jeonghan’s cup of tea.

“How many times have you watched that? Be honest.” he asks as they walk down the unfamiliar street towards the retro-themed diner. It’s rare to find one in the city, so he was kind of excited that they’re having dinner there.

“Maybe eighteen times?” Seungcheol chuckles, most probably expecting the worst reaction from Jeonghan.

“EIGHTEEN TIMES?” Jeonghan’s eyeballs almost came out of its sockets. “I barely even survived watching it once!”

 

They continued their banters, laughing a lot in between as they continued their way. The night thankfully wasn’t that cold, and a few minutes later, they arrive at the diner. It wasn’t packed but there were a number of people. Seungcheol opens the door for Jeonghan and scans the surroundings outside before stepping in.

“Orange juice? Come on, you’re better than that.” Jeonghan challenges him.

“I can’t drink on duty.” Seungcheol sneers.

“You’re off duty tonight. Come on. Get some beer.” he whines.

“No. I didn’t apply for my leave.”

“Leave approved without application!” Jeonghan exclaims. He grabs a pair of chopsticks, split it in half and taps it once on each of Seungcheol’s shoulders. “I, Yoon Jeonghan, you’re employer, hereby grant you a leave day.”

Seungcheol laughs so loud. His cheeks were red in amusement, his teeth showing, his gums all out, his dimples prominent, his eyes in crescent - what a rare and perfect sight.

“What? Wasn’t that how it’s done?” Jeonghan feigns ignorance and Seungcheol laughs even more.

 

After what seemed like forever, their food arrives and Jeonghan felt his stomach grumble. He was hungry, but he didn’t even feel it. The night was just too good, he didn’t mind dying of hunger tomorrow.

“So, what made you take this kind of job?” Jeonghan asks as he picks up a slice of his burger.

“The money.” Seungcheol shrugs. “I get to drain pockets of celebrities like you.”

Jeonghan throws a fry at him. “Oh shut up.” Seungcheol laughs at him. “No but seriously why?”

“I don’t remember why.” Seungcheol answers honestly. “I just know that this is the only job I can do and I am good at it. I don’t remember doing anything else before this.”

“Ahhh. I thought it was some cliche story of you having a girlfriend. And you failed to protect her. And she gets killed. And then you feel guilty all your life so you protect other people.” Jeonghan slurps his cola loudly after ranting.

Seungcheol doesn’t say anything. His face was dark, and he was just looking at his food, unmoving. Jeonghan slowly puts his cup down, realizing that he might have hit the nail unintentionally.

“Oh my god. That’s it, isn’t it?” Jeonghan tries to look at Seungcheol in the eye. But his date just looks at his food. “I am so sorry, Cheol. That was so stupid of me to make a joke out of it.” Seungcheol was turning red, he was fuming. “I didn’t realize it could happen to people. I am so so…”

Then Seungcheol laughs, so loud and hearty, that the people sitting nearby turned in their heads in their direction. “Oh my god. You should have seen your face!”

Jeonghan throws a napkin at his face. “That’s not fair! Not funny! I hate you!”

“It was funny! Oh my god!” Seungcheol was still laughing. “I got you! HAHA!”

He glares at him but Seungcheol kept on laughing. His eyes were gone as it turns into crinkled lines, his face was contorted in a funny way as he just can’t seem to stop laughing. Jeonghan gives up and gives in to his date’s antics. He laughs with Seungcheol and they were both a laughing mess in the diner.

 

Dinner continued on with more laughters and a little bit of light-hearted conversations. Speaking of cliches, the jukebox suddenly starts playing a melody both of them can’t recognize. It wasn’t a slow song, more like an upbeat jazz. They look at each other, Seungcheol’s expression soft while Jeonghan’s was a little more challenging.

“Aren’t you gonna ask me for a dance?” Jeonghan smirks.

“My hands smell like ketchup.”

Jeonghan rolls his eyes. “Oh come on!” he pulls Seungcheol and drags him to the makeshift dance floor by the back of the diner. A few couples have already started dancing, most of them old. But they didn’t mind. Jeonghan grabs Seungcheol’s hand and places it around his waist while he held onto Seungcheol’s arm. Their fingers were intertwined as they started to slowly move to the beat.

It was nice. Save for the fact that as he stares into Seungcheol’s eyes, his bodyguard looks everywhere around him except directly at him.

“Cheol…” He finally looks at him. Jeonghan chuckles. “Stop looking around. We’re fine.”

He feels Seungcheol’s hold around his waist tighten, as his body was pulled a few centimeters closer to him. Seungcheol looks into his eyes and smiles. He gets lost in them, those dark deep eyes staring back at him - like it’s digging deep into his soul.

Jeonghan snaps out of his thoughts as something breaks behind him. Seungcheol immediately scoops him up and moves him to the side. It was just a waiter dropping one of the glass pitchers, but Jeonghan felt relieved that Seungcheol did that. He probably could have panicked if he wasn’t too distracted with Seungcheol’s eyes. He sighs.

_‘How else can this night be better?’_

 

*****

 

The house was dingy, but thankfully it was clean and neatly organized. He can’t imagine a guy earning three million won a week to be living in a place like this. The size wasn’t bad, it has two bedrooms, a good-sized living room and kitchen, but it was badly decorated.

“I can see where all the money is going.” Jeonghan comments jokingly.

“Now you understand why I took the job. I have expensive taste.” Seungcheol jokes back. “Do you want a drink?”

“Hmmm, water would do.” Jeonghan looks around the house. There were photo frames in boxes that were probably never put up. Plaques and certificates filled the others and Jeonghan picked one in particular.

 

“You were part of the Presidential Security Service?” Jeonghan asks Seungcheol, who came back with two glasses of water.

“Yeah. I was.” the answer was short and solid.

“What happened? Why did you leave?” Jeonghan approaches Seungcheol who was now seated on the couch.

 

“I can tell you why.” Seungcheol stands up and grabs the glass of water Jeonghan was holding to place it beside his on the coffee table. Their faces were just inches apart.

 

“But that would take a long long time.” Jeonghan’s breath hitched. He feels his scarf fall to the floor as Seungcheol’s hand brushes his collarbone. Jeonghan’s eyes automatically shut close with the touch.

 

“Would you rather listen to it all night?” he feels Seungcheol soft and cold lips on the space between his neck and shoulders. “Or would you rather do something else?”

 

His lips were suddenly ravished by another pair of lips. Seungcheol’s hands were around his waist and back, while Jeonghan’s was on Seungcheol’s chest, rubbing and feeling.

 

_‘Fuck! Finally!’_

 

*****

 

The kiss was deep and heated. They were both out of breath but they never stopped - both completely enraptured in the moment.

 

Seungcheol’s right hand roamed down Jeonghan’s spine all the way to the back of his thighs. He lifts Jeonghan’s left leg to go around his waist, while the latter lifts his right leg to mirror the other. He moves his arms from Seungcheol's chest to wrap around his neck.

 

He carries Jeonghan's entire weight, securing him in a tight hold as both of Jeonghan’s legs were locked around him. He can feel them both getting hard as their bodies were pressed against each other.

 

Seungcheol makes a bold decision and shifts his hold from Jeonghan’s waist to his ass, consequently pressing their hard on together. As if on cue, Jeonghan releases a soft but lewd moan against their still connected lips. He swears he almost came.

 

They finally reach his bedroom and Seungcheol drops Jeonghan on the bed. But Jeonghan doesn’t waste a minute. He pulls Seungcheol by the collar, making him fall on top of him, both arms stretched on both sides to support his body. He reaches for Seungcheol’s pants and undresses him while Seungcheol sucks on Jeonghan’s shoulder blades.

 

As soon as Seungcheol was freed off of his clothes, Seungcheol focuses on undressing Jeonghan. He unbuttons his sheer shirt one by one while leaving a trail of kisses from his chest towards his navel. He stops just above the waistband and the latter groans impatiently. He unbuttons and unzips Jeonghan’s pants, pulls it down and discards it on the floor.

 

Jeonghan pulls him back on the bed and suddenly goes on top of him. He looks at him with heavy-lidded eyes. He looked so sensual, a hundred times more sultry than how he looked during his performance on stage. His pupils were dilated, his lips were pink and plump, and there were beads of sweat forming on his temple. He looked so fucking beautiful.

 

The marks he made on his shoulders were starting to get a darker shade of pink. Jeonghan rolls his hips and their erections rub together. Even with their underwears still on, Seungcheol felt the heat and craving. He stares at him as he arches his back and throws his head in pleasure. Seungcheol grabs both of his hands so he doesn’t fall.

 

As Jeonghan rolls his hips again, he let out a moan and Jeonghan drops his head forward to look at him straight in the eyes. His blonde hair was a mess and he was biting his lips, breaths heavy and body almost limp in satisfying exhaustion. Jeonghan does not only look beautiful - he looks ravishing.

 

All rationality was thrown out the window as Seungcheol pushes Jeonghan off on top of him to a standing position. With one swift motion, he pulls down Jeonghan’s underwear, spins him around and bends him by the dresser.

 

A single piercing scream of unmistakable pleasure echoed throughout the house. The chest of drawers started shaking, rattling all the contents inside, as the room was filled with Jeonghan’s melodic moans and Seungcheol’s feral grunts.

 

*****

 

Harsh white light woke him up from his sleep.

Jeonghan felt a soft blanket wrapped around his naked body. But the space beside him was empty. He turns his head around to look for a clock, instead he finds Seungcheol sitting by the foot of the bed, all dressed up in his daily suit. He’s wearing his socks as he’s getting ready for the day.

“Cheol…” his voice was raspy and dry, probably due to last night’s strain. “Why are you all dressed up?”

“I have work today, Jeonghan. You should get up too.” Seungcheol says flatly.

“But I am here with you. Basically you’re working.” he stretches himself on the bed and groans. His body ached, but it felt cared for and definitely satiated. It’s odd but he loved it.

“Jeonghan…” Seungcheol stands and faces him, expression cold and serious. Jeonghan doesn’t like where this is going. “Last night… It’s a mistake. I shouldn’t have done that.”

 

 _‘Fuck.’_ He kind of saw it coming, but it still hurt.

“What do you mean? It wasn’t a mistake. I wanted it. You wanted it.” He tried to sound nonchalant, but he was already shaking.

“That’s exactly it. I shouldn’t have wanted it. You’re my client and I can’t -”

“What? You can’t fuck your client? Is it?!” his voice was higher than he intended it to be.

“Jeonghan. I don’t want complications. I can’t protect you like this.”

“Like what?”

“I can’t be attached to you.”

 

Jeonghan was dumbfounded. He knew Seungcheol wouldn’t be easy, but after last night he thought he was finally able to break the walls that had been standing there on guard since the first day. But here he was, back to square one.

“Then you can just fuck me. With no attachments.” he shrugs his shoulders and leans against the headboard to look at his bodyguard.

“That’s just not possible. And that’s not how I do things.” Seungcheol turns around to take his coat from the rack.

“Are you fucking serious? Last night was mind-blowing!” Jeonghan stands up this time, holding the blanket around him.

“Let’s just forget about what happened.” Seungcheol walks to his bedroom door to let himself out. “I’ll be waiting by the car. Take your time to get ready.”

He walks out, closing the door behind him. Seungcheol feels the knob slip off his fingers as Jeonghan yanks it open.

 

“So that’s it, Cheol?!” Jeonghan’s voice was full of emotions - laced with anger and desperation. He hated the way it sounded, but he couldn’t control it. He was just hurting so much. “Are you really just gonna turn away from this?! From me?!”

 

Seungcheol just stood still, back facing him, and it makes Jeonghan’s mind go crazy. “Go get dressed, Jeonghan.” He says softly after a while - but it felt cold and piercing.

 

As soon as Seungcheol’s back disappeared down the staircase, his tears started pouring down and his hand traveled to his chest. It hurt so much. He never saw it coming - the pain. He never felt so weak... so vulnerable... so pitiful.

 

All it took was one night.

 

One night... and the angel was wrecked and broken by a heartless soul.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading!
> 
> It's my first time writing a smut scene so I hope it was okay. I was pretty confident about it last night. But after posting, I kinda got nervous about the reaction it's gonna get. But do let me know what you think about it and this chapter as a whole! Thank you!
> 
> -A♡


	5. Inside Out and a Mess

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry! I know I was supposed to update it yesterday. But you know what happened! Getting Closer happened and I wasn't in the right state to write! I am so sorry!
> 
> But here is it! Here's the update! Wrote it in a rush and I did not proofread this at all. So please forgive me for any mistakes! Thank you so much!
> 
> Enjoy reading! ♡

The SUV pulls to a stop in front of The Executive Tower. Of course there were too many people waiting outside. Fans lined up the entire stretch of the pathway while security stands in between the red carpet and the mess of people.

Mingyu alights first, followed by Joshua. They stand by the left side while Seungcheol stands on the right. As soon as Jeonghan alights, the crowd went in chaos. Screams and cheers filled the air as they all make their way to the entrance.

There were flashes of light - from the cameras of the fansites and the very expensive lighting equipment that Seokmin had arranged for the hotel to install. Jeonghan stops midway and turns around to give his fans a wave and a greeting.

 _‘This is going to be the longest three days of my life.’_ Seungcheol thought to himself.

Finally, Jeonghan makes a move and walks down towards the main door of the hotel lobby, with Mingyu and Seungcheol on both of his sides scanning the crowd intently.

Of course the hotel was extravagant. Everything was in marble and gold - from the floor to the columns to the ceiling. The furniture and fixtures were very opulent and majestic. It definitely fits Jeonghan’s taste.

They were welcomed by the hotel manager and behind him was a team of ten people who bowed to them as they arrived inside.

“Welcome Mr Yoon Jeonghan and team. We hope the trip to here was alright.”

“Yes, it was. Thank you.” Jeonghan smiles at them and motions at the lobby. “This hotel is very nice. I think I’d love to stay here more often. What do you think, Wonwoo?”

His manager, who just came right after they did, nods. “I agree. I am sure we can have that arranged.”

“It would be our pleasure to have you stay with us. The executive suite is ready for you.” the hotel manager says with a sparkling smile. “May we please assist you to your room?”

“Of course, that would be great.”

They were led into a huge elevator as the staff scrambles to take their luggages from them.

Seungcheol looks at Dino and points at the cart, and automatically, Dino looks over at all of their luggages, making sure none are misplaced, mishandled or planted with something. He’s glad he’s trained him so well.

The elevator doors close and they all made their way up to the highest floors.

*****

As expected, the executive suite did not disappoint. Everything was perfect, from the marble floors to the white columns to the pale blue and oak Victorian furniture, and the very lovely flower arrangements scattered around the hotel suite.

Jeonghan sauntered around the living space, while everyone else waited, not knowing what to do. Wonwoo was right, this suite can definitely house fifty people. And Seungcheol can only imagine what tonight would look like.

“Well, I guess we should get things set up.” Wonwoo says, breaking the silence. “Jeonghan, go take a rest. You will have to go for hair and makeup in two hours.”

Jeonghan waves at them before turning to head his way over to the master bedroom in the suite. Joshua follows him, bringing his personal luggage and bags. The hotel staff and manager bow at them before Seokmin continues to give instructions.

“And by the way, this is Seungcheol, Jeonghan’s bodyguard. He will handle the security details around the place, while Mingyu here will stay to guard the suite closely the whole day, adding to the hotel security we requested to stay outside the doors at all times.” Seokmin says directly to the manager.

“As discussed, I will need to be able to freely roam the entire hotel the whole day. Get passes to roam certain areas, like the kitchen, concert venue, basement, everything.” Seungcheol continues.

“Yes sir, that has been arranged. Please follow me to the office for some paperworks, and you can do your checks right after.”

With that, they leave the hotel room leaving the rest of the team scrambling to get ready for the charity concert and the party.

*****

Being alone with his thoughts did not help at all. Seungcheol was feeling uneasy and unsure. Not enough to get him distracted from doing his job, but they were still annoyingly itching to get attention.

He always thinks about that night - how he was so irresponsible and unprofessional, how he was not able to stop himself, how Jeonghan was so captivating that he failed to do what he had always done - be unaffected by everything. That’s how he does his work right.

But then again, something in him says he doesn’t regret it happening. Jeonghan was right, it was mind-blowing and unlike any other. His scent, his eyes, his messy blonde hair, the red marks he made on Jeonghan’s perfect shoulders and neck - he was beautiful.

The way Jeonghan’s nails dug into his flesh, the sounds he made when he’s claiming him, the way he breathed his name into his ears - Jeonghan was unimaginable.

And his heart tells him things - a lot of things.

But he has to ignore them all. He has to shut all his feeling down and do his job. It’s the only way to protect him - whether it’s because he wants to do his job well or because it’s Jeonghan, he’s not sure anymore.

 

The hotel lobby was mostly clear, save for the usual arrival of guests and hotel staff roaming around. The elevators all worked fine. The basement was full of obstructions and Seungcheol had to call three people from the hotel to get all those things sorted.

“These has to go.” Seungcheol sternly instructs the hotel staff. “All these has to go way to the back. This is a passageway. If there is an emergency, people can’t pass by here to the exit. You understand?” the staff nods and proceeds to have the arrangement done.

He leaves the basement and heads for the kitchen. This one was going to be tough, being a five-star hotel, the kitchen would be very busy. Especially with the charity concert tonight. He takes his phone out to call Dino.

“Dino?”

“Yes hyung?”

“I need you to help me go around the perimeter, check the exits that I told you about. Make sure there’s no obstructions for you to drive the car in.”

“Already on it hyung!”

“Great. Let me know if you find anything.”

The call ends as Seungcheol enters the kitchen. He briskly walks straight into the center of the very busy stations, with dozens of chefs preparing for the event, making sure there is enough space for them to run through in emergency cases. He reaches the end of the station and turns right to find the exit blocked by empty crates.

“Seokju! Who is Seokju?”Despite the loud and busy kitchen, Seungcheol’s voice seem to have been louder as the kitchen manager runs to meet him.

“Yes, sir?”

“I said no obstructions at all times, right? What are these crates doing here?” he was calm, but his voice was laced with anger.

“Oh the vegetables just got delivered and they are being loaded in the fridge. They will remove these shortly.”

“At all times. That means, no obstructions even for just ten minutes. Get the crates out as soon as you unload the trays. That’s how it’s done.”

“Yes sir.” Seokju bows fearfully.

“Now get these out of here and I better not see them blocking the door from the outside. You understand?”

The kitchen manager bows then flees to call on the delivery guys. There was so much to do, so much to look out for. Worse he doesn’t know where all these frustrations are coming from. This was what he has been afraid of. He’s usually calm and focused. Now, he’s worried and frustrated. He can’t risk Jeonghan’s safety.

The stage was the last location for his inspection. He stands in the middle and looks over to the empty round tables and chairs. The venue was not as huge as where actual concerts are held. It was more for smaller gatherings and events. And since it’s a charity concert, people will be seated instead of standing. There will be dinner and cocktail as Jeonghan performs ten scheduled songs for tonight and two more nights after.

*****

The concert went uneventful. Seungcheol was really hands on with the entire process of making sure security was tight and everything was in order. But thankfully nothing happened.

 

He thought Jeonghan was amazing too. Though he wasn’t able to see much of the performance, because of course he was on duty, but a few glimpses and peripheral views definitely made him feel like he’s missing on a lot. But he can’t risk it. For whatever reason, he just can’t and won’t cross the line. As the concert ended, Jeonghan went backstage and up to his room to prepare for the after party.

They have not talked for days, except when Jeonghan decides to throw sarcastic remarks at him every now and then. Everyone might have picked up on the tension already - Joshua especially. He seems to be eyeing them all the time from afar. Wonwoo is observant too, but he doesn’t attempt to ask or get in between them. And he’s thankful for that.

 

The suite was packed with people. But considering it was an event closely monitored by Seokmin and Joshua, he doesn’t pull his total bodyguard mode out. He went to the buffet table to get some snacks and a glass of orange juice. Even though he’s laying low, he can’t drink while on duty.

“Cheol!” someone calls him from behind. He sees a familiar face looking at him.

“Dongho! What’s up man?” Seungcheol greets the man, shaking his hand and pats his back.

“I’m good! I’m good! What? You do celebrities now?” Dongho replied.

“Just once. After this, I’ll go back to the usual.” Seungcheol answers. “How about you? What have you been up to? I haven’t seen you in years, since like what?.”

“Since after I left security service! Well, I take everything now to be honest. Private clients, celebrities, politicians, corporate, you name it. This way, the money just keeps coming.” Dongho sips on his glass of whisky. 

Seungcheol laughs at his old friend. “You haven’t changed a bit. It’s still about the money.”

“Well of course!” Dongho looks at him in disbelief. “Don’t tell me you’re doing it for the love of the profession.” They both laughed at this when suddenly all the chatters died down as people turned their attention towards the small platform set up in the middle of the suite.

 

“Everyone! Welcome to my after party!” Jeonghan announces.

He was wearing a white tweed coat with very low neckline over a see-through cream insert, black pants and black boots. Jeonghan looked perfect. It was only after THAT night when Seungcheol started getting used to finding his client attractive, so it still does take him off guard.

 

“That’s yours?” Dongho asks Seungcheol in a whisper while Seungcheol nods in response. “Hmmm, nice choice. Must be a handful?”

“You have no idea.” Seungcheol mutters.

 

“I want everyone to let loose and have fun tonight. Please enjoy the drinks, the food and the conversations. Thank you for coming! I love you all!”

Applause erupted and Jeonghan steps down from the platform towards Seungcheol and his friend. Without a word, Jeonghan grabs Seungcheol’s glass and downs half of it while staring at Dongho.

“Eww, orange juice.” he makes a face and Dongho laughs at him. “I take it you have met my bodyguard.” Jeonghan runs his hand on Seungcheol’s back teasingly.

“We used to work together.” his friend answers.

“Oh okay… Is that whisky?” Jeonghan asks his friend while handing him back his glass.

“Yes it is.” Dongho says with a wink.

“Well that’s great. I think I need a drink of that.” Jeonghan smiles seductively at Dongho and Seungcheol was trying his best not to react. “Why don’t you bring that glass to my room?”

Jeonghan gives Seungcheol one quick look with a smirk before disappearing into his bedroom, followed by an excited Dongho. He’s left in the middle of the crowd with a stoic face on.

 

Well, fuck. Right? Just fuck. He downs what’s left of his orange juice as he sees the door close behind the two of them. He didn’t expect it to sting. He definitely needs alcohol now, but he can’t. He won’t risk it. Whatever personal issues or feelings he has right now, he has to keep it to himself. Maybe wrap it with duct tape and throw it outside the window. He doesn’t need this, he shouldn’t let this distract him. He needs to protect Jeonghan. The culprit might be anywhere in this room if not in this hotel.

 _‘It’s just feelings, Seungcheol. You have tried so hard. Don’t beat yourself up.’_ he encouraged himself. He just stands there and stares at the closed door for a few more minutes, his expression unchanging.

_Fuck. Fuck. You did this to yourself.’_

He keeps on staring at the door. It doesn’t open. He wants it to open now. He does not want to imagine what was going on in there. Now he knows why people stay away from these kinds of things… He realizes it’s way more painful than getting hit by a bullet.

 

He turns around and walks away from the crowd. He’s had enough for tonight. As soon as he reaches the balcony, he sighs and sends Wonwoo a message.

**_“I’m sorry, Wonu. After the concert on Sunday, I’m out.”_ **

 

He can’t do this. He can’t do his job properly. At least not like this. He takes a chair from the hallway and positions it by the hidden curve on the balcony, away from the noise of the party. He leans against the wall and drowns everything away in his thoughts.

 

_‘I can’t protect you like this, Jeonghan. I’m sorry. This is all my fault.’_

 

*****

As soon as he heard the doors clicked locked, Jeonghan turns around and sees the person approaching him. Their lips meet and the guy has his arms wrapped around his waist. Jeonghan went limp. The guy was too strong and he wasn't gentle. It felt uncomfortable. It felt wrong.

The guy’s lips went to his neck, kissing and licking trails but it didn’t feel good. Jeonghan was disgusted. But he lets him do it, he lets him make up for the emptiness he felt for the past few days.

He was handsome, looked strong and manly, and he had cute dimples. Well not as cute as Seungcheol’s but the fact that he was there beside Seungcheol made him do it. Jeonghan knows he was being petty. But it hurt, and he wanted to get back at him. Fuck, he doesn’t even know this guy’s name.

Hell now that he thinks about it, he isn’t even sure if Seungcheol felt the same. He was so cold and heartless, plus he didn’t even have any reaction earlier. He just looked at them blankly, which fucking hurts even more.

He was pushed onto the bed and the guy continues to make trailing kisses on his chest over his sheer clothing. His hand moves to touch Jeonghan’s member and he squeezes it slightly. A soft moan escapes his mouth, but Jeonghan knows he isn’t enjoying it.

He pushes the guy off of him, but he was pushed back on the bed and their lips met once more. This time, Jeonghan doesn’t kiss back. He tries to push the guy off of him again, but the guy grabs his neck and slams him back on the bed.

“You like it rough huh.” he says while his hands roam Jeonghan’s waist and hips. The guy’s hold was forceful.

Jeonghan was terrified.

He rolls off the bed and runs to open the door. He needs Seungcheol right now.

“No I want you to leave.”

The guy catches up to him and grabs his arm, but he was able to yank the door open. Seungcheol wasn’t there anymore.

"No, you don't. You wanted me here."

 _‘Cheol, where are you?!’_ He feels the guy tugging on his arms, but with all his strength, he keeps the other arm on the door. He finally spots Mingyu talking to someone.

“Mingyu!” Jeonghan raises his voice a little, not wanting to attract that much attention.

“Jeonghan. What’s wrong?” Mingyu was looking at him with his eyebrows furrowed, probably assessing the state he’s in.

“This guy here was just leaving.” Jeonghan opens the door wider to reveal a grinning Dongho. Mingyu looks at him with a piercing stare but the guy just shrugs his shoulder, smiles, and leaves the room, making his way towards the suite’s door.

Mingyu approached Jeonghan but he stops him midway. “Are you alright, Han?”

“Yeah.” he lets go of the breath that he was holding. “Where’s Seungcheol?”

Jeonghan probably looks like he’s about to faint as he feels Mingyu move closer to him

“I -” Mingyu looks around trying to spot Cheol while holding Jeonghan’s free arm to support him. “I don’t know. I think he left.”

 

He fucked up. He hurt Seungcheol because of his pettiness and now he has left him. He’s fucked up.

 

“I’ll go in now Gyu.”

“Are you sure you’re alright? I’ll call Shua.”

“No!” Jeonghan says immediately. “Please don’t. I don’t want to worry him, or anyone. I am fine. Please.”

Mingyu nods so he closes the door behind him and slides on the floor. Reaching for the bottle of Grey Goose nearby, he takes a gulp directly from it, burning his throat and chest in the process. He drops his head on his palms.

 

Tonight, he cries, just like how he did for the past few nights.

 

_‘You brought this on yourself, Jeonghan. You fucked yourself up.’_

 

*****

Sounds of vacuum cleaners surrounded the entire suite. Jeonghan comes out of his bedroom with his rose-colored silk pajamas on, wearing sunglasses. He walks towards the huge dining table while Seungcheol looks at him from the breakfast bar, sipping on his coffee.

“What the fuck are you looking at?” Jeonghan snaps at him. “Never had a rough night in your entire disciplined life?”

Seungcheol just stares at him for a while before getting his attention back on his coffee.

“You know what, you’re one selfish son of a bitch.” Jeonghan continues and Seungcheol sneers at him. “And I won’t let you sit there judging me!”

“Oh give me a break! I didn’t ask you to fuck just anyone in your hotel room!” Seungcheol fires back and Jeonghan doesn’t even touch his food. He slams the cutlery on the table and leaves the common space walking back to his bedroom.

Just then, Seungcheol receives a message on his phone. It was from Jun.

**_“Meet me at Lotteria near your hotel. Be there in 30 mins.”_ **

Seungcheol finishes his coffee before going back to his room to get ready.

*****

“It has the same substance that was on the letter. I think we will be able to locate him soon.” Jun says over a cup of coffee.

“Are you sure about this?”

“Yeah, we’re pretty sure man.” Minghao answers. “I think we even have some lead on the guy. Someone gave us a tip about an obsessive stalker. But we can’t make a move unless we prove that he has something to do with it.”

“How long will it take?” Seungcheol asks.

“Woah chill man. It might take a few more days, or weeks.” Jun says. “But we are onto something. Don’t worry.”

“Thank you so much for these. I owe you guys.”

“Well, the money is good isn’t it? You seem to be so hung up on this case.” Jun teases.

“There you go again, Jun!” Minghao throws bread crumbs on his colleague. “It’s not always for the money.”

“Well it is!” Jun exclaims and they all laugh for a while before Seungcheol waves them goodbye to go back to the hotel.

*****

Seungcheol hops out of the elevator and runs to the door. There was no one guarding outside the suite. He opens the door with his key and scans the whole suite.

“Jeonghan?” he shouts, checking the rooms one by one. “Mingyu?”

Wonwoo comes out of Jeonghan’s bedroom.

“Where is Jeonghan?”

“I don’t know. I thought he was with you.” Wonwoo answers.

He runs towards the telephone and calls hotel security. “This is Seungcheol from the executive suite. Where is your man at the door?” The operator seemed to be confused at the question and it frustrates Seungcheol so much. “I said the man at the door! Get someone up here NOW!” he slams the phone and runs towards the door.

“Cheol, where are you going?” Wonwoo calls after him.

 

Just then, the suite doors open and Jeonghan comes in laughing with Mingyu behind him, carrying several shopping bags. Jeonghan stops and stares at Seungcheol.

“Jeonghan, where have you been?! You got us all worried. You can’t do that!” Wonwoo scolds his talent, while Seungcheol just stands there.

“Wonwoo, I am going to do what I want, whenever I want. Besides, I’m sick of hanging out with a bunch of boring people.” he looks at Seungcheol. “No offense, Gyu.”

He sits on the couch, grabbing a glass of water beside him, while Mingyu sets the shopping bag one by one on the floor. They all look at each other, and Wonwoo shifts his feet, uneasy because of the tension.

“One more night and I’m done.” Seungcheol directs his words to Wonwoo.

“You listen to me! You work for me! I am paying you to work for me so you don’t tell me what to do!” Jeonghan yells at him.

“Stop it Han.” Wonwoo turns to Jeonghan as Seungcheol walks away heading towards the door. “Where are you going Cheol?!”

“Check the routes as usual.” Seungcheol slams the door, anger bubbling inside him.

 

_'Fuck this! Seriously!'_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't able to write anything Thursday night as I went Christmas shopping, and Friday morning too since I moved office. Then at night, you know what happened. So I only was able to start writing this at 5PM today. I did it in a rush. I promise I will fix everything when I have time. But I am planning to write the next chapter right after I have late night dinner, so I can post it tomorrow.
> 
> How did you like this chapter? I am weak for Jeongcheol so I cried a little while writing this. I hope I made you feel things too.
> 
> This fic is coming to an end and I hope you enjoyed reading so far. If you loved this fic, please share it with Carats who enjoy reading too. Comments will be very much appreciated as I want to know if I am going to the right direction.
> 
> I love you all! Thank you so much!
> 
> -A♡


	6. Our Unresolved Fights

Having a warm shower definitely helped him simmer down. He knew he’d been harsh on Seungcheol today but it wasn’t like he did it on purpose. Emotions got ahead of him, anger overflowed and he just spilled. He only hopes that he wasn’t serious when he said that he’s leaving after the last concert night. He doesn’t actually know how to feel about it.

Removing the lid of his moisturizer with difficulty, Jeonghan knew tonight was just gonna be a bad night. Right now, he’s not in his best mood to make his performance a great one. His phone rings and he answers it without looking at the contact.

“Hello.”

“Hello hyung.” It was Jeongsoo’s voice.

“Hey Jeongsoo. How are you? Is everything alright?” Though it has just been two days, he already missed his little brother so much.

“Noooooo… Noooooooo...” The voice was deep and humourless. It wasn’t Jeongsoo’s voice. It was a voice of a man - malicious and wicked. Jeonghan throws the phone and screams. _‘Nooooooooo…’_ the voice rings in his head.

Wonwoo opens the door and finds Jeonghan on the floor by the foot of his bed, looking at his phone by the floor on the opposite side, terrified.

“Jeonghan! What’s wrong?!”

“Jeongsoo! Jeongsoo! Check on him please! Check on him Wonwoo! Please!”

*****

“When I say no obstructions, no obstructions! It’s the second time I call you out on this!” Seokju shakes in fear as Seungcheol screams at his face. “Don’t make me call the entire hotel management on this!” He kicks the crates and heads out to the emergency exit.

Same routes, same problems. Seungcheol was so frustrated and angry that he wasn’t thinking rationally anymore. Everything that has happened between him and Jeonghan was turning him into this one big of a mess - a person who can’t do his job properly.

He walks back up to the hotel lobby all the way to the convention space. Everything was as smooth as it could be. Lights checked, backstage set up checked, projectors and camera positions checked, staff list checked. Seungcheol wraps up his route check and heads back up to the suite.

As soon as walks in, Wonwoo stands up from the couch and walks up to him.

“Cheol, please.”

“Wonwoo, I said it already. One more night and I am done.”

“Cheol, someone called earlier…”

“I don’t care. I can’t protect someone who doesn’t have some sense of security for themselves.”

“It’s the guy, Cheol. That’s him. This shook him up. Please Cheol. I am begging you.”

“Just…” Seungcheol doesn’t know where to stand anymore. It has been eating his mind up the whole day and he can’t do it anymore. He just can’t. “Just tell me when he’s ready to go down. I’ll be at the balcony.”

The door slams shut behind him. He inhaled enough amount of air and exhaled sharply. He has never been this stressed about a job before. Damn, it’s all because of his fault. No, it was Jeonghan’s fault. If he hadn’t been so - so… captivating.

“SHIT!” He kicks the railing of the balcony. He walks towards the blind curve of the balcony, where he would always hide and sulk, but he was surprised to find Jeonghan there, still in his robe, a lit cigarette between his fingers.

Jeonghan was expressionless while he looked exasperated. He turns away from him, places his elbows at the railing and looks far away. He can’t deal with this shit right now.

“I don’t care what happened to us, Cheol.” Jeonghan breaks the silence. “Nothing that happened between us matters to me now.” Seungcheol sighs. “I understand the situation now. And you’d have to believe me because I won’t beg.”

Silence. He lets Jeonghan do all the talking. “It wasn’t what he said.” He could picture Jeonghan’s face falling, worry engraved in his features. “It was the way he said it.”

He can’t help it. He turns around to face Jeonghan and lean against the railing. “Cheol, I need you. I am scared. And I hate my fear. Please protect me and Jeongsoo. If anything happens...”

Seungcheol shakes his head. “I can’t… I can’t protect you like this. It’s uh…” he runs his fingers through his hair, stressed about the entire situation. “It’s impossible. The odds are all on his side.”

“I will do whatever you say, Cheol.”

Seungcheol laughs at this. Yeah right. Like the diva Jeonghan would listen to him. He’s tried so hard already, yet here they are.

“If it were me, I would want to take you away from here for a while.” he motions his hand. “From all these buzz and fuzz.”

“Alright, I can do that, Cheol.”

He raises both of his eyebrows at Jeonghan. “That would mean cancelling the rest of your concert dates.”

Jeonghan doesn’t respond for a moment. He closes his eyes and eventually nods. “Alright.”

“No more Seokmin, for the moment. You give Mingyu and Dino a vacation.”

“Okay.” Jeonghan opens his eyes and sighs.

“You cross me off this time, Jeonghan, and I swear I will kill you myself.”

They both stare at each other, but Jeonghan knows how serious the situation is. Despite that, Jeonghan chuckles nervously and agrees to all of Cheol’s decision.

*****

The three-hour drive to Daegu was almost dull, save for Dino and Jeongsoo’s continuous banters. Seungcheol was the one who drove most of the ride since Dino was supposed to be on vacation. But he wanted to go with them.

They finally reach Seungcheol’s family home almost four hours later and Jeonghan was tired. He hasn’t had a roadtrip that long before. Joshua looked like he wanted to get out of the car as soon as it stopped. Their backs were aching and their butts were sore from sitting the whole time. They only made a stop once and it was for merely fifteen minutes.

Dino alights the vehicle first followed by an overly excited Jeongsoo. They open the back of the SUV to unload their luggage. Someone approaches them, which Jeonghan assumes was Seungcheol’s father.

“Dad!” Seungcheol exclaims as he sees the man.

“Seungcheol.” the old man hugs his son. “All of them in trouble?”

“No.” Seungcheol smiles. “Only one.”

“Well come up front and make introductions there.” Seungcheol’s dad leads them from the shed that was a makeshift garage to the front of the house.

They were all in awe. The house was a very beautiful modern home but mixed with traditional style architecture. From the outside, it looks like there are four bedrooms aside from the main living space that was so wide and cozy. It was made of wood and surrounded by glass windows, which makes it look like a cabin but bigger. It was perfect for the very serene view in front of it - a huge lake. There was a small boathouse which housed one motorized boat. Willow trees were scattered around the perimeter and it helped make the place look more tranquil and peaceful. It was just now they noticed how there were no other houses nearby.

“This place is beautiful.” Joshua says.

“Yeah it is.” Jeonghan replies to his best friend. “I think we’re going to have such a good healing here.”

Dino and Jeongsoo caught up with them, bouncing with joy at the sight of the boathouse. “Seungcheol hyung! Do we get to ride the boat?!”

“Yes we can, Jeongsoo. But not today, okay?”

“Okay!”

 

Introductions were made and they were led to the dining room for late lunch. Yeongsu, Seungcheol’s father, prepared good food for them. The table was filled with every imaginable Korean food and side dishes, and Jeonghan’s mouth was instantly watering.

“Wow. This is incredible!” Joshua was genuinely surprised, a smile forming on his lips.

“Oh I am so glad that I decided to go with you guys!” Dino said after taking a seat on one of the chairs.

“Dad, you didn’t have to prepare all these. We could have helped you cook.”

“Thank you so much for the food and everything Mr Choi.”

“You’re welcome.” Seungcheol’s dad smiles. “And don’t call me that. Just call me Yeongsu.”

Jeonghan nods and they started devouring the very generous preparation by the Choi's.

*****

Dinner was surprisingly enjoyable, with all the small talks and jokes thrown at each other. Although he agreed to wait, Jeongsoo somehow convinced Seungcheol to have to ride the small boat today. Dino went with them while Joshua brought all the luggage upstairs. Jeonghan helped Yeongsu with the dishes. From where they were in the kitchen, they could clearly see the view of the lake. Jeongsoo was laughing as Dino couldn’t pull the string off the cleat, while Seungcheol was teasing both of them.

“You must be in deep trouble if you need someone like Cheol.”

Jeonghan smiles solemnly. “I guess I am.”

“Rivalry issues?”

“We don’t know yet. Maybe. Maybe stalker.” Jeonghan looks down as he wipes the plates dry.

There was a few minutes of silence before their conversation continued.

“He left security service when his mom passed away.” Jeonghan stopped wiping the plates and looked intently outside the window. The boys were still having so much fun. “He was with the president when it happened. He couldn’t leave. The president needed him.”

“I’m sorry. If you don’t mind me asking, how long has it been?”

“Five years ago. It was his second year in PSS.”

“That’s not so long ago.” He never knew about Seungcheol’s story. And now he felt guilty knowing that he’s been stubborn and all Seungcheol wanted was to protect him - probably like how he wanted to protect his mother.

“Don’t worry. My son will protect you.” Yeongsu pats his back comfortingly. “Well, go upstairs and get rested. I will finish all these. You’ve had a long trip.”

“Thank you so much.” He puts the rag down and smiles at Yeongsu genuinely.

*****

“Shua?”

“In here!”

He enters the second room down the hallway and sees Joshua unpacking their stuff. “Hey stop that. We’re on vacation. I’ll unpack mine and Jeongsoo’s.” He quickly grabs his luggage and started organizing his stuff inside the small cabinet. Joshua only smiles.

“Is Jeongsoo alright?” Joshua asks.

“Yeah, he’s out with Seungcheol and Dino.”

“It’s great that we’re having this break, Han.”

“I know. I am sorry I overworked everyone.” His voice was laced with guilt.

“No. Not because of that, silly.” Joshua chuckles. “Because of you overworking yourself too. And all these threats and stuff. It’s unhealthy.”

“Yeah…” Jeonghan trails off. “Shua, what have I done wrong? Aside from being the person that I am?”

Joshua looks at his best friend with an unreadable expression. “Nothing Han. You’re just being you.”

His words seemed to be comforting but unsettling at the same time. Jeonghan can’t point it out but he shrugs it off for now. Even though Joshua was with him 24/7 as his personal assistant, he still missed his best friend.

Jeonghan leans his head on Joshua’s shoulders and the latter stops unpacking to pat his head.

 

“I missed you, Shua.”

 

There was no answer.

*****

“Oh he got mad at me!” Yeongsu tells the story animatedly. “Like which son would scold their father for not hitting them?” Everyone at the dinner table laughed. “He was like ‘Dad, why did you never hit me? Now I don’t know what pain is ‘cause you never hit me!’”

“Dad, come on…”

“So that’s when he joined every sport imaginable, so he got to get hit by a ball, by people, by everything.” Seungcheol was now laughing with them. “It was how he wanted to be tough. And look at him now.”

“Stop it dad.” Seungcheol said sheepishly.

“Oh my. Is Seungcheol blushing?” Jeonghan teases him.

“NO I AM NOT!” he replies defensively, looking at Jeonghan with a challenging stare.

“Omo! You are.” Everybody started to laugh. “Our dear Cheollie is blushing.”

The laughter grew calmer as they finish their dinner. Joshua volunteered to do the dishes while Dino and Yeongsu went around the house to make sure it’s secured. Seungcheol accompanies Jeonghan and Jeongsoo to their room making sure they feel safe.

“Thanks Cheol.” Jeonghan says to him as Jeongsoo hugs him goodnight.

The ground level was already dark, save for the light reflected from the outside posts that shine through the huge glass windows. He walks to the kitchen to grab a glass of water, looking at the view of the lake outside. It was calm.

 

As soon as he puts the glass down, he felt someone move behind him.

“I see the way you look at him.” he turns around to see Joshua slowly approaching him. “And I see the way he looks at you.”

He doesn’t move. He stays rooted to his spot, unsure where this conversation is going. “But what is it, Cheol? What were all those for?” Joshua was now just a few feet away from him but he doesn’t stop walking until he was face to face with him, with Seungcheol’s back pinned against the kitchen counter.

Unexpectedly, Joshua moves his head forward to kiss his lips but he quickly looked away, avoiding the touch. He just stares at the window outside. Joshua grabs his chin to turn his head to face him, but Seungcheol grabs his wrist and pulls it down slowly.

“Joshua.”

“Why Cheol? Am I not attractive enough?”

“Joshua, this is not what’s supposed to happen.”

“You fucked one, Cheol? Why stop there when you can have two?” Joshua presses their bodies together. But Seungcheol lets go of his wrist and held onto both of his arms, pushing their bodies apart.

He feels Joshua tense in his hold. After staring at each other’s challenging eyes, Joshua frees himself from his hold and runs up the stairs to his bedroom.

What all that was about, Seungcheol didn’t know. He just remembers the look that Joshua usually gives him when he sees Jeonghan and him together. But he never tried to decipher what they all meant. Now he’s at a loss for words.

*****

Jeonghan wakes up to find Jeongsoo gone. He panics for a while, but then hears voices downstairs. _‘He should be safe with Seungcheol.’_ Grabbing his robe from the closet, he walks down to find Joshua humming and singing while preparing breakfast.

“Good morning, Shua.” he takes a seat on the breakfast bar stool.

“Good morning. What would you like for breakfast?”

“Anything that you’re cooking.”

“Hmmmm.”

“Where’s the rest?”

“Seungcheol and Yeongsu went to check the perimeter of the property. Dino was with Jeongsoo, most probably outside playing.”

Jeonghan hops down the stool and walks to the window. He sees his brother and Dino skipping stones by the lake. The weather was humid enough to turn the ground muddy. It was also cold so Jeonghan was glad Dino had his brother covered up in a thick jacket, most probably Seungcheol’s.

“We should go for a boat ride today.” Jeonghan suggested.

“That might only be able to carry three people though.”

“Three at a time then.”

“That would take a long time for the boat to get back.”

“You’re just scared of the boat, Shua.” Jeonghan turns around to tease his best friend.

Joshua smiles. “You’re right. You know me so well.”

“Of course I know you so well! You’re my best friend.” His best friend hides his face but he knows Joshua was also smiling.

*****

They all head out after breakfast as Jeongsoo insisted that they go for a real boat ride around the lake this time. Seungcheol could not reject the request so he proceeded to get some snacks to bring with them. The boat can sit four people, but Jeongsoo wanted to ride the boat on his own. Of course, no one allowed him to.

“Please? Seungcheol hyung taught me how to start it yesterday.”

“Yeah, but you don’t know how to navigate it so no!” Jeonghan replied sternly. “You don’t even know how to swim!”

“But I don’t want the boat to be crowded.” He stomps his feet.

“It won’t be crowded, dear. It’s enough room to house four.” Joshua pats his head. “Besides, it’s more fun when there’s more.”

Jeongsoo finally gave up. “Are you coming with us?”

“No, it will only be you, your brother, Dino and Seungcheol.” Joshua whispers encouragingly. “It will be fun!”

“Awwww why not?!”

“If I tell you, will you keep it a secret?” Joshua lifts his pinky finger.

“I promise.” Jeongsoo smiles and locks his pinky against Joshua’s.

“I am scared of the water. I don’t know how to swim.” Joshua winks at him and Jeongsoo’s face brightens, wanting to tease his hyung.

“Okay. It’s our secret. I won’t tell anyone.” Jeongsoo nods as Joshua wraps his arm around the kid’s shoulder.

 

“Hey Jeongsoo, how about this?” Seungcheol called out. “You want the two of us to go halfway around once then comeback to fetch Dino and Jeonghan?”

“Yes! Yes! Let’s do that!” Jeongsoo jumps in joy as he runs towards the jetty, with Seungcheol chasing behind him. The four of them left by the porch were laughing as they saw Seungcheol panting after the chase.

“I’m glad we did this.” Jeonghan says as he sees Seungcheol get on the boat first and stretching his arms to reach out to Jeongsoo. His brother hops in and jumps with joy as Seungcheol starts the motor of the boat.

“Yeah. Jeongsoo seems to be having so much fun.” Joshua smiles as he answers back. He knows his best friend loves Jeongsoo so much, just like he’s his own brother.

 

The boat made it a few meters away from the jetty when Seungcheol seems to be shouting something to Jeongsoo.

“What’s happening?” Jeonghan says, panicked.

Yeongsu runs towards the jetty followed by Dino and Joshua. They made it halfway when Jeonghan was brought back to his senses to run after them.

“Cheol! What’s wrong?!” Yeongsu shouts at his son.

 

They reach the edge of the jetty and Seungcheol pushes Jeongsoo off the boat.

 

“JEONGSOO!” both Jeonghan and Joshua scream.

 

“Dino!” Seungcheol shouts inaudibly as Dino dives into the cold lake water to save Jeongsoo.

 

Seungcheol jumps off the boat too while Dino drags his brother back to the jetty.

 

“WHAT DID YOU THINK YOU WERE DOING?!” Jeonghan was screaming at Seungcheol. “YOU KNEW HE CAN’T SWIM!”

 

Joshua took off his coat to wrap it around Jeongsoo while Dino was panting, laying his back down. Seungcheol was still trying to swim back the distance from where he jumped. The boat ran a few more meters away from them, unattended.

 

“CHOI SEUNGCHEOL! ANSWER ME!” Seungcheol reaches the jetty and holds onto the wooden ladder attached at the side. “WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?! YOU COULD HAVE KILLED HIM!”

 

Just then, Jeonghan staggers back as a sudden loud explosion shook the jetty. Wood and steel debris scattered over the lake water. Dino and Joshua had their arms around Jeongsoo, while Yeongsu was standing with his arms covering his face.

 

The boat blasted into pieces..

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if the update is late. I feel a little demotivated lately.  
> But one more chapter and this fic will be done.
> 
> I hope you all love this as much as you loved the previous one.  
> For all new readers, thank you for being here.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. Thank you so much!
> 
> -A♡
> 
> PS. Did not proofread this at all. Will do it tonight when I get home. Please forgive me for any mistakes, typo, spelling mistakes or grammatical errors.


	7. When We See Each Other Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made a mistake. Consciously. The first part of this chapter was supposed to be the ending of the previous chapter. But I messed up. I am so sorry.
> 
> I came to give you a warning. I changed my tag. That's it.
> 
> I hope you enjoy reading this!♡
> 
>  
> 
> PS. I did not proofread this so please forgive me if there are any typos, mistakes, grammatical and spelling errors. I will read this later and fix everything.

“All power and phone lines are cut.” Yeongsu comes back after checking the area.

“Hyung, the car tires are all punctured.” Dino also arrives with the bad news.

“We can’t walk to the nearest town hall right now. It’s getting dark.” Yeongsu shakes his head. “Whoever did this, they know what they’re doing. Is this still the stalker, Cheol?”

“I don’t know, dad. We don’t have much reception and everyone’s phone is dying.” Seungcheol drops his head in worry. “We will have to wait for someone to come tomorrow to pick us up.”

“I will save up some battery, hyung.”

“Anyway, we all have to go in now. I’ll lock the doors by the living room. Dino, you should check the windows and doors upstairs. Cheol, you check the back of the house.”

 

They all go in to lock the doors and windows. Jeonghan, Joshua and Jeongsoo were all huddled up in the living room waiting for news.

“We have to be really vigilant tonight. Just until morning.” Seungcheol saves the rest of the details.

“Can’t we just drive out tonight?” Joshua asks, panic evident in his voice as he hugs Jeongsoo in his arms.

“Tires were all punctured.”

“So he’s around. He’s still around?” Jeonghan looked terrified.

“I believe he is, son.” Yeongsu checks all the locks on the living room windows. Everything seems to be okay. “Dino, why don’t you accompany the three to the second floor and make the checks there. We will do one more round down here.”

“Cheol…” Jeonghan refuses to go anywhere without him. He would only feel safe with Seungcheol around.

“Han, go upstairs. Dino will be with you. We need to make sure everything is locked up here.”

The four of them hesitantly goes upstairs to settle in for the night. Jeonghan wraps himself and Jeongsoo in a blanket while Joshua goes to his own room. Dino checks on them every now and then while making sure the rest of the windows and doors on the second story were locked.

 

“You know this isn’t a stalker, Cheol.” Yeongsu said as soon as they were alone in the living room. “This is the work of a professional.”

“I know dad.” Seungcheol takes his gun with him and settles on a couch facing the front windows of the house. “This isn’t just anyone.”

“Just until the morning, son. I’ll go to my room at the back and watch from there.” Yeongsu grabs his rifle and walks to the back.

“Thanks Dad.”

*****

His phone beeps and a message pops up.

**_“Cheol, what do you mean? We meant to call you, but figured it’s the weekend. We already got the guy.”_ **

It’s impossible. It has only been hours, though Seoul was just three hours away, it was still impossible for them to catch up to the culprit that fast.

**_“Who is the guy?”_ **

He receives a call right after.

“Cheol, he works full time at the car wash station and part time cleaning after-events. He’s obsessed with Jeonghan. You should have seen this guy’s locker!”

“Jun, I told you. The guy who did it is not just a stalker. This guy’s a professional. The bomb was discreet, the tires were even punctured and the way the lines were cut was too concealed and clean. If he just wanted to scare us, he didn’t have to do all those.”

“We traced the calls Cheol. And the substance from the letters. This is the guy. We are sure of it.”

Seungcheol doesn’t answer. He was confused, this couldn’t be it. There's something that’s bugging him, but he can’t put a finger on it.

“Cheol. Don’t worry, I will get security to fetch you from your place right now if you’re worried. But I assure you this is the guy.”

“Thanks Jun. I owe you and Hao.”

“No problem, man. Just come back safe.”

The call ends and Seungcheol was left in silence, a cup of coffee beside him. He hears someone sniffling and it’s coming from the dining room. Seungcheol grabs his gun and makes his way silently.

 

It was dark and the only light was coming from the moonlight outside. But it was enough to make out the figure seated on the dining room. Joshua was crying, a bottle of alcohol beside him. He was muttering something inaudible.

“Joshua.” He approaches the guy and shakes his shoulder.

“I didn’t mean to get Jeongsoo involved, Cheol. I didn’t meant to.”

“What are you talking about?!” He whispers sternly.

“It’s my fault, Cheol. It’s all my fault.” Joshua was crying now.

“Stop crying! Tell me what happened.” Seungcheol was seething with anger but he had to be rational right now.

“It was a few months ago… at a bar I don't remember.” Joshua sniffles as his face contorts into something like confusion and regret at the memory that was clouding his mind. “I was drunk, Cheol. I was drunk.”

“Get to the point.”

“I paid someone! I paid someone to get the job done. I was upset and tired and drunk.”

“What were your instructions exactly?” Seungcheol gritted his teeth.

“I - I don’t know.. I don’t remember.” Joshua cries again while downing the alcohol straight from the bottle.

“You have to remember! This is important right now!” He whisper-shouts, making sure not to disturb or rattle anyone else at home.

“I think… I think…” He was out of breath after crying for so long. “I think I said until he gets the job done.”

Seungcheol stands up in frustration. The situation is much more extreme than he thought it was, and whoever it is that Joshua has spoken to was incredibly experienced. He doesn’t know whether or not the guy was better than him, but after everything, the guy was very deceptive and tricky. He almost got them by the boat.

Seungcheol blames himself. Maybe he’s not as good as he thought he is. He underestimated the enemy.

“I swear, I didn’t mean for Jeongsoo to be involved.” Joshua grabs his arm. “I swear I didn’t know he was gonna go this far. I was drunk and I wasn’t thinking well!”

“But you meant to kill your best friend.” Seungcheol snaps at him, disgusted.

“Cheol, it was out of anger… I regret it. I do. I tried to stop him. But I - I couldn’t . Not now. He - he threatened to kill me.” Joshua was now kneeling on the kitchen floor, his head between his palms. “I tried. I said he should stop and I’d pay him double to go away. But he wouldn’t… he said it’s personal now and that he wanted his job done and completed.”

“Do you remember his face?”

“No, I can’t. We only talked over the phone after that.” Joshua shakes his head. “It was a mistake. I swear...”

“Give me his details.” Joshua nods but doesn’t answer. He was shaking and crying.

 

A sound of glass breaking was heard throughout the house and Seungcheol was sure it came from the second story. He runs up the stairs instantly only to find Dino outside Jeonghan’s room with his gun out on alert.

“What was that?”

“I don’t know, hyung. It came from our room. I think it’s our window, but I didn’t go check. I didn’t want to leave the door.”

“Have a look inside the room and check on them. I’ll guard the hallway.”

Dino nods and opens the door to see Jeonghan awake, fear obvious in his eyes, while Jeongsoo was fast asleep in his arms.

“What was that?” Jeonghan whispers, his voice hoarse and shaky.

“I don’t know, hyung. We’re checking. Don’t worry, I’ll be outside.”

Jeonghan nods.

 

Dino closes the door behind him and finds Seungcheol approaching the door to their room. He holds the gun tight in his hands, waiting for anything that could be dangerous. Seungcheol trained him for this moment, he should be ready.

 

They hear someone murmuring downstairs, and suddenly it turns into shouting. Seungcheol rushes downstairs.

“Dino, stay there! Don’t let them out of your sight!”

 

“No, please. Stop it. Please! I don’t want it anymore!” Joshua was begging someone. He can’t see the guy. He could only see Joshua’s back. He had both of his arms up in the air in surrender. The guy says something inaudibly but Joshua just sobs, backing away.

Seungcheol had his gun up and ready. He turns to a corner to shoot the culprit, but before he could do that, a shot was fired and Joshua falls back on the carpeted floor. Yeongsu comes from behind Seungcheol to run after the figure of the man dashing out the open living room window, while he crouches down to check Joshua’s pulse.

 

A single shot through the heart.

 

_‘No pulse.’_

 

“Dad! Go back! I’ll do it! Go back!” Seungcheol runs after the guy. Yeongsu falls back to a stop and sprints back to the house.

 

It’s too dark, he can’t see that much. The willows made it worse with all the cascading leaves and branches. He hears the running footsteps stop so he stops as well.

 

The night was silent, save for the sound of crickets and frogs. He closes his eyes and focuses his attention on hearing any distant sound. He faintly hears someone panting from his far left. Turning his body to face the sound, he fires a single shot, probably hitting a tree. He hears someone scramble to run but he keeps his position, eyes closed, following the sound of someone running. He fires another shot but this time he hears someone yelp, followed by the sound of leaves and twigs crunching. The guy was running away.

Running towards the sound, Seungcheol made sure to have his weapon ready to fire should he spot the man. After finally reaching the end of the stretch, he sees a car reversing quickly and out into the deserted road. He fires a few shots, missing the tire.

 

It was too late. The culprit was gone.

 

Joshua was also gone.

 

*****

 

This industry is unforgiving and insensitive. At a time like this, the media was still in a frenzy. There was no room for privacy. There was no room for mourning. They tried to make it as private and secluded as possible. But people were just too selfish and inconsiderate. Reporters wouldn’t leave Jeonghan alone - they flocked over to his house, calls and messages flooded both Seokmin and Wonwoo.

He was devastated for the loss of his best friend but here are people who don’t give a shit about how he genuinely feels. Somehow, he blamed himself for everything that happened - for being stubborn, for being a diva, for being insensitive and oblivious to everything around him. But everyone said it wasn't not his fault. He wants to believe them. It was easier to put the blame on someone else, true. But every time he goes back to the fact that Joshua is gone, the circumstances were still because of him.

 

A week later, Wonwoo receives news from different awards productions regarding Jeonghan’s various nominations. Artist of the Year and Song of the Year for Purple Rose were amongst them. It’s that time of the year again, and this was what Jeonghan and everyone in his team was waiting for.

“These came in today.” Wonwoo hands him the envelopes for the invitations to attend as well as the nomination notices.

“We have been waiting for these for so long.” Jeonghan mutters. “Now that it’s here, it doesn’t feel the same without Shua.”

“I know, Han.” Wonwoo grabs his hand and holds it firmly. “You think about it. I will let you decide. I also talked to Seokmin and even he suggested to give you some time. You have a few more weeks to decide.”

“I will think about it.” Jeonghan closes his eyes to bat away the tears that were starting to form. “Thank you for everything, Won.”

*****

He doesn’t even know why he still had to be here.

He failed. A guy was dead. And more so, it happened at his house. He can’t protect anyone anymore. He’s a failure.

But Wonwoo insisted he stay. And that he’s still the best one out there. He isn’t sure anymore.

The water was cold but he still dipped his feet in the pool up to his calf. Jeongsoo was playing a meter away from him, clutching a wooden toy boat. He knows the kid was traumatized. He loved Joshua after all. And Joshua cared about him so much.

 

“Is it okay if I sit beside you?” It’s the first time he heard Jeonghan’s voice after a long time.

Seungcheol only nods.

“Is the water cold?”

“It is.”

Jeonghan makes a tiny shrieking noise as soon as his feet touched the water. Seungcheol smiles at that. Jeonghan shivers but eventually gets over it after a minute. They sat in silence for a while, both watching Jeongsoo play in the water.

 

“When I was ten, I told all of my classmates that one day I was going to win a daesang.” Jeonghan said, breaking the silence. “I bet all of them 1,000 won each.” Seungcheol chuckles at this.

“I know you might not approve of me attending the awards. But you see, it was a class of 40 students. That’s 39,000 won, Cheol.” Jeonghan continues his joke with a serious expression and that makes Seungcheol laugh.

“People are gonna be all over me again. Asking me what happened and how I am. Every single thing will be dug up. But I have to eventually face them all.” The conversation took a serious turn and Seungcheol couldn’t help but consider.

“Jeonghan, I am not gonna stop you from attending the concert.”

“I know.” Jeonghan looks at him earnestly. “But I want to know if you’re still with me, Cheol.”

Does he really have a choice? The guy was still roaming the streets freely. He doesn’t have an idea who it was. They tried to trace the bar, the phone, everything. But this guy seems to know his way around detection. It was just impossible.

“I don’t know if I can protect you, Jeonghan.” Seungcheol finally says it. “I failed. The guy killed your best friend. And I was there yet I wasn’t able to protect him.”

“Cheol, it wasn’t your fault. We were all caught off guard.”

“Exactly!” Seungcheol was now frustrated. “That’s exactly it. And I wasn’t supposed to be caught off guard. I was supposed to be always on guard.” This was the first he ever voiced out his thoughts over the incident and it’s upsetting him.

“I was supposed to be downstairs checking the front of the house. I should have trusted Dino to look after you.”

He was now massaging his temples, soothing his headache. “But I left the front of the house unguarded. I let the asshole trick me. I failed.”

“Please, Cheol. Don’t beat yourself up like this.” Jeonghan squeezes his arm comfortingly. “I need you. I still need you. Please. Not until we get him.”

Jeonghan was right. He had to do this. At least until he finds out who this person is. And he will kill him.

He felt Jeonghan’s hands lace their fingers until they were finally intertwined.

 

There’s nothing else he would want more than to protect Jeonghan.

Even if it will be the last thing that he’d ever have to do.

 

“Until we get him.”

 

*****

“Why are you all so tense? Come on!” Jeonghan whines inside the limo. Seokmin looks like he was about to faint, his eyes scanning the crowd outside faster than Seungcheol. Wonwoo, as always, was expressionless but he knows his manager is worried about tonight. Mingyu didn’t look any better in the front seat. While Dino and Seungcheol were on full alert.

“Nothing bad will happen tonight! Loosen up you people!” Jeonghan fixes his choker in the rearview mirror. “Unless I don’t get the daesang. Then that's bad.”

Seokmin nervously laughs at Jeonghan’s joke while the rest still had no change in their expressions.

“You guys suck. Seriously.” Jeonghan sulked in his seat while waiting for his turn.

 

Someone knocks the door twice and Seungcheol  alights from the front of the car with Mingyu following him. He opens the back door of the limo and as soon as Jeonghan steps out, the crowd went wild.

“Jeonghan! Jeonghan! Jeonghan! Jeonghan!”

Despite everything, Jeonghan tried to look his best tonight - all white shirt with gold detailing and trimmings, black tight pants and black shoes, plus the most important accessory - a velvet red choker. The crowd began chanting his name as Jeonghan waved to his fans. The MC called him to step on the platform by the red carpet for a short interview.

“Jeonghan, what a very sexy outfit you got there!”

“Oh thank you so much!”

“What are you most excited about tonight?”

“Since I am not performing tonight, I am most excited about the Artist of the Year and Song of the Year announcements of course!”

“Yes! Well I hope you grab the prize bag tonight, Jeonghan!”

“Thank you! Thank you!” He waves goodbye to his fans one more time and steps down the platform to continue his way inside the venue.

 

*****

“Mingyu, did you take the layout from Seokmin?”

“Yeah I did. But I don’t have the staff list yet.”

“Go ask it from him now. I have to go check the entire backstage.”

Mingyu leaves to look for Seokmin while he scans the people at the back. Celebrities, make up artists, hair stylists, managers, security, and staff - the backstage was crowded with so many people. Wonwoo sits beside Jeonghan, animatedly discussing to him about the programme for tonight.

“Jeonghan!” Someone shouts from behind him.

“Seungkwan, oh my gosh! Finally!” Jeonghan stands up to hug the singer.

“I know! It’s been so long!” Seungkwan exclaims. “I am so glad we are presenting an award together!”

“Isn’t that great?!”

 

Mingyu comes back clutching a piece of paper with him. “I got it Cheol.”

“Okay, now stay here and look after Jeonghan. I’ll make my rounds.”

“Okay.”

“Always hold onto your in-ear.”

“Yep. Okay.”

“And no more wine, Gyu. I am warning you.”

 

He turns around and walks towards the direction of the stage. The staff were busy going around, pulling mic stands and stacking chairs used as props. He walks towards the gap behind the stage where the MC, who was currently introducing tonight’s guests, and the audience were visible. He takes a peek when someone suddenly taps his back.

 

“Cheol! We meet again!”

“Dongho! What are you doing here?”

“On the job.” he shrugs his shoulders.

“Who?”

“That guy.” He points to the MC who was still onstage making some more announcements. “Lee Jihoon. Big time producer. Lots of money.”

Seungcheol nods. He watches Lee Jihoon exit the spotlight as a girl group goes onstage.

“Well, I have to go now. See you at the after party later!” Dongho waves him goodbye as he follows Jihoon closely behind. Seungcheol just nods in response.

 

He takes a peek at the audience again. Something didn’t feel right. The atmosphere makes him anxious about something. He taps his in-ear and grabs his mic, trying to reach Mingyu.

“Gyu, I want you to be on alert. I feel like it’s gonna happen tonight. He might want to do it on stage.”

“Are you kidding me, Cheol? That’s insane!”

“Just be alert. I am on my way back.”

“Excuse me sir.” A staff interrupted him. “I might need to confiscate that. It’s disrupting our signal.”

“I need to keep it, I am security.”

“I’m sorry but I really need to take it. We have our own security. We’ll give it back to you later.”

He didn’t want to be kicked out backstage, so he complies, removes his in-ear and surrenders them to the staff. He hurries his way back to the dressing room looking for Mingyu.

 

*****

“Gyu! Come here.” Seungcheol pulls Mingyu to the side so as not to make Jeonghan panic, but it was too late as Jeonghan turns around to see the both of them discussing in the corner. “I need you to study that layout well and check if there is anything amiss later.”

“Cheol, what’s wrong?” Jeonghan interrupts them.

He doesn’t answer. He just looks at Jeonghan, unsure on how to explain his gut feeling.

“Jeonghan! Come on! We’re going out in five minutes.” Seungkwan pulls Jeonghan towards the back of the stage but he resists.

“I need him to come with me.” He points at Seungcheol, which made the floor director confused.

“We have our own men manning the area backstage. You don’t have to worry.”

“I said I want him!”

There was silence after Jeonghan raised his voice. The floor director sighs and walks away, leaving Seungkwan to have to drag Jeonghan with him again. Seungcheol follows closely behind.

His nerves were getting the best of him. He was terrified about the possibilities.

_‘What was Seungcheol discussing about with Mingyu? Why did he look so worried? Is he out there? Is he gonna do something to me?’_

These thoughts clouded his mind. His knees were going weak.

 

“And ready, one two three and cue entrance!” the floor director shouts the instruction and he felt Seungkwan hold his arm tightly. He somehow was able to make it to the podium without collapsing.

Seungkwan reads something from the teleprompter but Jeonghan’s eyes were scanning the crowd. He was being paranoid. His partner stops talking so he looks at the teleprompter and reads the lines that were assigned to him.

He hears Seungkwan chuckle nervously. He must have missed to say something. The lights were blinding his vision. He looks to the side and sees Seungcheol looking at him intently, his eyes full of worry.

“And the Best Male Group goes to…” Seungkwan says after a while, grabbing the envelope from his hold to open and announce the winner. “Jeonghan, let’s announce it together.” Seungkwan whispers to him before completely taking the card out of the envelope. He nods at him.

“SEVENTEEN!” they both say the name through the microphone.

 

The crowd erupted in cheers and the entire stage was flooded with light as a group of thirteen boys filled the stage. Jeonghan doesn’t wait for their turn to finish. He runs towards the backstage, paranoia consuming him. He hates it.

 

“Choi Seungcheol!” he shouts backstage, startling everyone. “Choi SEUNGCHEOL!”

 

Seungcheol runs to the dressing room area assigned to Jeonghan and other solo artists.

“You made me look like a fucking lunatic!” he pushes Seungcheol.

“Han, calm down.” Wonwoo approaches Jeonghan.

“There was nothing there!” Jeonghan was now yelling loudly. “You made me look stupid and paranoid in front of thousands of people!”

“Jeonghan…” Seungcheol starts but Jeonghan points at him, eyes boring holes into his skull.

“You better get out of my way for the rest of the night!”

“What the fuck is happening here?!” Lee Jihoon yells at them, annoyed.

“Jeonghan, we need you to be out there for the daesang announcement. Other awards will be announced in ten minutes, just after the current performance. Then daesang.” the floor director comes in to escort him to the side of the stage where artists were sitting.

“Jeonghan, no. Please.” Seungcheol almost begs. “Wonwoo, stop him.”

“I said get out of my way.” Jeonghan snaps at him again as Wonwoo and the floor director drags him out of the dressing room.

 

*****

“Fucking diva celebrities… Inconsiderate...” Jihoon mutters as he makes his way out of the shared dressing room.

“Excuse me…” Seungcheol chases after Jihoon. “Excuse me, Mr. Lee.”

“What?!” Jihoon snaps at him.

“Where is Dongho?”

“Who??” He looks at him, pissed and confused at the same time.

“Dongho. Your bodyguard?”

“Bodyguard?! I don’t need a fucking bodyguard!” Jihoon spat the words. “Now move! I need to go!”

 

_‘FUCK!’_

 

“MINGYU! MINGYU!”

 

*****

 

Jeonghan sat between two male solo singers while behind him were girl groups. There were too many people in the audience but he can’t be bothered right now. He puts on his best poker face, smiling every now and then whenever he accidentally makes eye contact with anyone.

He was so upset that he made a fool of himself onstage. It wasn’t totally Seungcheol’s fault, Jeonghan knows. But it was upsetting how embarrassing it was for him to stutter and look like he’s constipated.

Thankfully Seungkwan saved him and adlibed his way through the announcement. The singer sat beside him as the other awards were announced. “Are you alright, Han?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry about earlier. I - I just spaced out.”

“It’s okay. I understand. As long as you’re fine.” Seungkwan rubs his arm then turns his attention towards the stage.

The lights went dim before turning bright again, revealing two actors on stage.

“The most awaited part of the night. Song of the Year and Artist of the Year.”

The nominees were shown on screen for Song of the Year and Jeonghan’s “Purple Rose” was included, as well as Seungkwan’s “Alright”.

 

“Song of the Year goes to…”

 

The crowd started screaming their bet’s name as the actors open the envelope.

 

“Alright by Seungkwan!”

 

Jeonghan stands up and jumps in joy, hugging Seungkwan in the process. Even if he didn’t win in that category, he was glad that it was given to a very good and deserving friend. Seungkwan lets go of him, eyes filled with tears, but nonetheless very happy.

“Uhhh - how do I say this?” Seungkwan starts his speech sniffling. “I really didn’t expect this so I didn’t come prepared with a speech!”

The crowd laughs and Jeonghan looks at his friend fondly. Somehow, his worries go away as he focuses his attention on what was happening in front of him.

 

Seungkwan finishes his speech and goes back to his seat beside Jeonghan.

“Congratulations Kwannie!”

“Aaahhh thank you, Han!” Seungkwan smiles. “Now it’s your turn.”

“Nah, I am not expecting it.”

“What do you mean?! You broke records!”

“Not enough to get a Song of the Year, are you kidding me?!” Jeonghan jokes with his friend. “It’s gonna be you.”

“Ssshhh they’re showing the nominees now.”

 

“Nominees for Artist of the Year…”

The screen plays clips of boy groups, girl groups and solo artists’ music videos. Both Seungkwan and Jeonghan were nominated, and Jeonghan braces himself for the announcement. He badly wants it but he doesn’t want to expect anymore.

The presenters open the envelope and pulls the card out, ready to make the announcement.

 

“Artist of the Year is none other than…”

 

*****

 

“Mingyu! Come here!”

“Cheol, what happened?!”

“I told you to fucking study the layout! Look at that guy over there! He’s not supposed to be there!”

Mingyu looks at the security guy blocking the gap between the stage and the backstage.

“And that camera man over there is not even counted in the list!”

Mingyu turns to look at the camera man situated at the left side most of the stage beside the audience.

“You go check on him and ask him to move or show his ID! Go!”

 

Seungcheol was so frustrated now. Something was gonna happen. He's sure of it. And where the fuck was Dongho, why did he lie to him, he doesn’t know the fucking answers. Though he had his suspicions.

As soon as Seungkwan finishes giving the speech, the security situated at the gap leaves the space following the presenters who announced Song of the Year. Seungcheol immediately replaced the guy and stood by the gap looking at Jeonghan who was talking to Seungkwan, oblivious to the possible danger he’s in.

 

“Artist of the Year is none other than…”

 

Seungcheol braces himself for the worst. He sees Mingyu approach the camera man, tapping his shoulders twice, but the guy ignores him and continues to record the stage.

 

“Congratulations, Jeonghan!”

 

Jeonghan’s song started to play and the crowd went crazy loud. Confettis were falling while Seungkwan and Jeonghan shared a hug.

Mingyu taps the guy again, and surprisingly the guy punched Mingyu in the face, with one hand still holding onto the camera.

 

_‘FUCK! It’s him!’_

 

Seungcheol steps forward toward the stage, almost reaching the podium, when a staff stops him. Jeonghan was now walking towards the stage while younger boy groups were bowing to him. He had no choice, he needs to do this.

He pushes the staff to the side as Jeonghan takes the center of the stage, only a mic stand in between him and his killer. Seungcheol sees something reflected on Jeonghan’s shirt button. The song reaches the chorus then fades away. He watches Jeonghan smile widely to the crowd before taking the mic to say something.

At the perfect moment, Seungcheol frees himself from the staff’s hold, lunging himself on to the stage in front of Jeonghan.

 

A single shot was heard and Seungcheol was on the floor a second later, with Jeonghan between his arms.

*****

 

Shards of glass scattered the floor, the trophy was shattered to pieces.

There was something wet and sticky, and he feels it soaking his left rib. Jeonghan tries to sit himself up, but the weight of Seungcheol’s arms was pinning him to the ground.

“Jeonghan! Are you alright?!” Seungkwan runs to him, holding him up. He feels Seungcheol move his arms, gun in his hand, aiming somewhere at the audience.

“Seungcheol!”

With that much distance, Seungcheol fires a shot at the camera man. The bullet hits the guy’s collar and he falls to the ground. Everyone screams.

Jeonghan sees Mingyu stand up to loom over the fallen camera man, gun also pointed. He fires another shot and the crowd’s panic turned into chaos. Everyone was running everywhere.

 

Jeonghan feels his arms being squeezed.

“Jeonghan! Are you hurt?!” It was Wonwoo.

 

He looks at his shirt - once was white, now a deep color of red. Realization hit him.

 

“It’s not me... It’s not me!”

“Jeonghan, please! We need to bring you to the ambulance!” Seungkwan’s grip on his arm tightens.

“It’s not mine! It's not my blood! Seungcheol! Seungcheol!” Jeonghan crawls back to where Seungcheol was laying, his navy blue suit was turning a shade of purple, soaked in his own blood.

 

“SOMEONE PLEASE! SEUNGCHEOL!”

He wasn’t responding. Seungcheol was motionless and unconscious.

 

“CHEOL! STAY WITH ME! PLEASE! CHEOL!” Jeonghan taps Seungcheol’s cheek, still no response.

“WHERE IS THE FUCKING AMBULANCE?! WONWOO! WHERE ARE THE FUCKING MEDICS?! GET THEM HERE RIGHT NOW!!”

 

Four men came in with a stretcher and Jeonghan was starting to feel dizzy. He doesn’t know what was happening anymore. There were too many people onstage. But his eyes were focused on Seungcheol. As the men carries him out on stage, Wonwoo holds him back.

“No… No! I want to go with them! WONWOO, LET ME GO!” His voice echoes the entire venue.

“Jeonghan. Please.”

“No! Let me go! CHEOL!! I SAID LET ME GO!” He tries to free himself but Wonwoo’s grip was strong and he was losing his strength. His eyes were filled with tears. He feels himself weaken in Wonwoo’s arms. His knees give in and everything blacks out.

 

Jeonghan collapses on the floor of the stage, with Seungcheol’s blood soaking more of his shirt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay that wasn't totally the ending. Since I messed up and this chapter became too long for me to handle, therefore I will add another very very very short chapter as an epilogue. I am so sorry! The epilogue will be up within today! Please do not kill me! Please do not hate me!
> 
> And I hope you enjoyed reading this. I feel like I've been slacking off and my writing became worse instead of improving. But I thank everyone who stuck with me till the end of another Jeongcheol fic.
> 
> By the way, do you have any questions, comments, uncertainties, curses, etc? Please comment and let me know! I will try my best to answer them all.
> 
> I love you all!
> 
> -A♡


	8. You're Always By My Side

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "함께라서 웃을 수 있고  
> 너라서 울 수도 있어  
> 그렇게라도 못할 게 어딨어  
> 마지막이란 말  
> 하지 마 영원히  
> 내가 너의 곁에 남아있을 테니
> 
> 우린 정말 무슨 일 있어도  
> 언제나 그랬듯 함께 있을 거예요"
> 
> -웃음꽃 (세븐틴)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry. I know this was supposed to be uploaded two days ago. But... you know how things were for the past two days. I'm sorry I got caught up. But here is my very short epilogue for this fic. I hope you like how the story ends. Love you all. ♡

He didn’t feel like leaving.

Even with Dongho dead, he still didn’t feel safe. Not without Seungcheol by his side.

Seungcheol had been a pain in the ass, literally, but he can’t deny the fact that he loved having him around. Sometimes, he regrets being stubborn and uncooperative. Maybe Seungcheol would still be with him if he became compliant and critical about the security issues. He felt so stupid.

World tour - it was one thing he always wanted to have. He will get to visit places so far away that he only once dreamt of going. A little bit different this time though, since Joshua won’t be with him. When they were young, they both dreamt of exploring more of the world outside Korea together. It’s really difficult not having him around anymore.

There were just so many things he wished he didn’t do. But Jeonghan decided he would just have to turn all those regrets into learning experiences.

 

“Han, we’re here.” Wonwoo says. He was staring out of the window for too long, he didn’t even realize the car had already pulled to a stop. “Let’s go?” Jeonghan nods.

His new bodyguard, an old man who can pass as his father, but with good body built, definitely scary face and very professional suit, climbs down from the front seat to open the door for him. He alights the vehicle with Jeongsoo and Wonwoo behind him doing the same. Dino and Mingyu alights as well and starts unloading his personal luggage.

“It’s cute.” Jeonghan said as he looked at the small private plane flying him to another Asian country.

“Wait till you get inside.” Wonwoo said as he grabs Jeongsoo by the hand to walk up the stairs.

Jeonghan doesn’t move. He just looks at it with so many mixed emotions. He doesn’t know whether to feel excited, sad or guilty. Mingyu walks up beside him while Dino follows Wonwoo and Jeongsoo bringing more luggage with him.

“Are you okay, Han?” Mingyu looks at him with a worried expression.

“Yeah.. Just that… it doesn’t feel the same, Gyu.”

“I know. But I bet Joshua would want you to enjoy everything.” Mingyu flashes his canine at Jeonghan. “We should go.”

 

Jeonghan smiles at the thought. “You’re right.” He walks towards the plane with Mingyu in tow. Dino was coming down the steps to fetch more of the luggages when he stops midway. His face lights up as he dashes to someone standing behind Mingyu.

“Hyung! You came!”

“I did.”

 

Jeonghan hears a familiar laugh.

He turns around to see a cute gummy smile directed at him. His left arm was still on a cast. He couldn’t help but roll his eyes at this infuriating, but now too adorable, human being.

 

“Han.”

 

“What now, Seungcheol? Are you gonna stop me from going on my world tour?”

 

Seungcheol approaches Jeonghan, face inches apart. Dino pulls Mingyu to the side to let the two have their moment.

 

“I was just gonna say take care.”

 

“Yeah I will.. But why did you have to get me an old guy as a bodyguard.”

 

Seungcheol lifts his hand to brush Jeonghan’s blonde hair away from his eyes. “I don’t trust you.”

 

“What?!”

 

“You have this thing for bodyguards. I don’t trust you.”

 

Jeonghan pushed Seungcheol playfully, feigning annoyance but his cheeks blushed an embarrassing shade of pink. Seungcheol laughs, and Jeonghan couldn’t help but to chuckle with him.

 

“Does it really have to be him?”

 

“Yeah. He’s a good one, Han. I promise. He’ll be able to better protect you.”

 

“I’d feel safer when you’re with me.” Jeonghan looks down. He never thought he would ask this from Seungcheol.

 

“I don’t have to be your bodyguard to be with you.” Seungcheol lifts his chin and looks at him in the eyes.

 

“What do you mean, Cheol?” he was confused.

 

“Jeonghan, we have to go!” Wonwoo shouts as the luggages were done being loaded. Dino and Mingyu were nowhere to be seen too. Only the old guy was standing by the car, probably waiting for Jeonghan to go first before following.

 

“Give me a minute, Won!” he shouts back.

 

“We’re gonna be late! The runway can’t wait for us!”

 

“I said give me a minute Jeon Wonwoo!” Jeonghan snaps and Seungcheol chuckles - still the same old Jeonghan.

 

“Hey, calm down.” Seungcheol smiles at him and plants a soft kiss on Jeonghan’s nose. “Why don’t we continue this conversation on the plane? Hmmm?”

 

Jeonghan’s jaw dropped. “You’re coming with us?!”

 

“Yes, I am. Now go before Wonwoo leaves the both of us here.”

 

He could not believe it. He didn’t know who arranged for Seungcheol to go with him but he’s not gonna complain. Not at all! Tears started forming in the corners of his eyes as he jumped to hug Seungcheol.

 

“Oh my god Cheol…” he sniffles in the crook of Seungcheol’s neck.

 

“Slow down Hannie.." Seungcheol chuckles. "My ribs..”

 

“FUCK!” he immediately pulls himself away. He forgot Seungcheol’s gunshot wound wasn’t totally okay yet. They had to stay in the hospital for a week after his surgery. Seungcheol was still recovering. “I’m so sorry, Cheol…”

 

“It’s okay.” he grabs Jeonghan’s hand and pulls him to his side.

 

“YOON JEONGHAN! I SWEAR TO GOD YOU’RE THE REASON WHY I FEEL EMPTY INSIDE! COME TO THE PLANE NOW OR I’LL LET THE PILOT RUN BOTH OF YOU OVER!” Wonwoo was yelling now, seething with anger, while Jeonghan and Seungcheol only laughs at him.

 

“Shut up Jeon Wonwoo! Let Mingyu fill that emptiness that you’re talking about! STOP WHINING!” Jeonghan shouts back, a grin on his face, as they walk hand in hand towards the steps.

 

This is how things will be right now. This is how he moves on. This is how he begins a new chapter in his life - both in his career and his personal life.

 

The plane makes its way towards the runway and his stomach was suddenly in knots. He was still nervous about the uncertain future, but not as much as he was when they were on the way to the airport.

 

He knows he will be able to get through everything, as long as he has his brother, his friends, his team and his bodyguard - or not… he’s not sure, he still needs to check - beside him.

 

Despite everything, Jeonghan was certain about one thing… with their fingers intertwined and his head on Seungcheol’s shoulder, Jeonghan knows he’ll always be safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's the end for this fic! I really hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> I know it's too much to ask but it would be really great if you could drop some comments. I just want to know how I did for this. Your thoughts, or questions, or feelings...  
> I feel demotivated to continue writing lately... so comments would really be appreciated.
> 
> Again, I want to thank you all so much for giving my fics a chance! I never thought I would actually love writing! So thank you so much for making everything enjoyable for me!
> 
> Until the next one... if ever...
> 
> -A♡


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